Chapter 9: Wealth Stirs the Heart

“Demon, are you in a bad mood?”

Yun Miaoqing spoke as she looked up at Lü Yang, who was resting with his eyes closed.

“A little.”

Lü Yang sighed and casually recounted the predicament he was facing.

“This is the Demon Sect, treating its disciples as expendable resources, devoid of any humanity,” Yun Miaoqing gently parted her red lips.

“Demon, Fellow Daoist Lü, you possess commendable talent and an excellent disposition. Why subject yourself to such grievances in this Demon Sect?” Yun Miaoqing said, “If you lift the restriction on me and help me escape the Demon Sect, I can recommend you to become a disciple of our Jade Pivot Sword Pavilion.”

Yun Miaoqing wanted to seek death, but he had no interest in accompanying her.

When impoverished, one should maintain their integrity; the immediate priority was to enhance oneself.

After careful consideration, Lü Yang decided against purchasing the Yin-Yang Immortal Flower.

Instead, he spent all his wealth to acquire ten Vital Energy Great Pills that could increase his cultivation.

“This lifetime has essentially reached a dead end.”

“After all, I neither intend to repay the loan nor am I willing to waste decades of time as a beast of burden. Once the loan term ends, I will undoubtedly die without a burial place.”

“Therefore, I must seize this period to improve myself as quickly as possible!”

Lü Yang had already made up his mind.

In the next life, he would choose cultivation, and for that, he needed to elevate his strength to a higher level as soon as possible.

“If my cultivation is too low, Liu Xin, who was present at the time, might notice. So, at the very least, I must reach the same realm as he was then,” Lü Yang pondered, “At the very least, I need to reach the mid-stage of Qi Refining and pair it with a technique to conceal my breath. Only then might I be able to deceive him.”

Lü Yang dared to think this way because he had confidence.

This was because the Qi Refining Realm had ten levels: early, mid, late, and perfection stages.

Within these minor realms, there were generally no bottlenecks; one could break through by accumulating enough resources.

What truly hindered many Qi Refining cultivators were the bottlenecks between the minor realms.

Advancing from early to mid-stage, mid to late-stage, and late-stage to perfection became exponentially more difficult, causing countless cultivators to make no progress.

“According to my calculations, ten Vital Energy Great Pills, combined with the spiritual veins of the cave dwelling, should be enough for me to break through to the third level of Qi Refining. In fact, this is also the cultivation level of most disciples within the sect, who rely on enduring time and accumulating experience to improve, ultimately getting stuck at the bottleneck of early-stage Qi Refining, becoming the sect's beasts of burden.”

If nothing unexpected happened, Lü Yang would have been one of them.

However, in this lifetime, he had a variable in his hands.

With a thought, Lü Yang summoned a misty white Qi in his hand, which transformed at will into a sword shape or dense smoke, as if it were an extension of his arm.

Innate True Qi!

“According to Liu Xin, the greatest function of Innate True Qi is to help one break through bottlenecks. His breakthrough to the late-stage of Qi Refining must have been aided by it.”

Liu Xin could use it to break through to the late-stage of Qi Refining.

Using it to break through to the mid-stage of Qi Refining should not be a problem for me.

“As long as I break through to the mid-stage of Qi Refining, this life won't be in vain. At worst, I can restart immediately. In the next life, with higher cultivation, my starting point will also be better!”

A moment later, a voice came from outside the cave dwelling.

His Vital Energy Great Pills had arrived.

Lü Yang opened the door and saw a woman standing outside, dressed in plain clothes, with a beauty not inferior to Yun Miaoqing and an even more voluptuous figure.

“I am Qing Chen. Greetings, Junior Brother Lü.” The woman bowed gracefully and then smiled softly. Her laughter seemed to possess a magical quality, soothing the heart and making people unconsciously feel a fondness for her. “I have been ordered to deliver the Vital Energy Great Pills you purchased. Please present your token for verification.”

Lü Yang was familiar with the procedure and complied immediately.

During the handover, this Qing Chen Fairy gently probed, “Junior Brother, being able to purchase so many pills this time, did you perhaps come into some wealth?”

“Senior Sister, what are you saying?”

Lü Yang shook his head with a bitter expression, “I just took out several loans, hoping to improve my cultivation so I can take on some higher-paying tasks.”

“I see.”

Fairy Qing Chen nodded, her face full of concern, “Junior Brother, there's no need to belittle yourself. Which of us formal disciples doesn't have a few loans?”

“However... forgive me for being blunt, Junior Brother, but you still don't understand how to adapt.”

“Oh?”

Seeing that Lü Yang was interested, Qing Chen Fairy smiled slightly, “There are only so many sect missions. How could they possibly be enough to repay so many loans just through missions?”

“In the Primordial Saint Sect, if one only knows how to walk the ordinary path, it’s impossible to get rich.”

Qing Chen Fairy spoke softly, “I originally thought that you, Junior Brother, had discovered the cave dwelling of a senior brother and gained an inheritance, and thus made a big profit. That’s why I shamelessly asked. I didn’t expect that it wasn’t the case.”

“Cave dwelling.”

Lü Yang lowered his eyelids, his gaze calm like an ancient well, but his tone feigned a look of being moved: “I am slow-witted, Senior Sister. Please elaborate.”

“Junior Brother, did you know that the Primordial Saint Sect was founded within the ‘Sky-reaching Sea of Clouds’?”

Qing Chen Fairy said blandly, “Within the Sea of Clouds, aside from the four inner peaks, there are many other peaks established in the past by true disciples and elders.”

“However, the path of cultivation is long, and over the years, people inevitably fall. Yet after they fall, their mountain peaks and cave dwellings are not dismantled, but remain within the Sea of Clouds. Though there is a degree of risk, each and every one of them is an opportunity. Even a casual gain can be exchanged for a large amount of contribution points!”

“If you are interested, Junior Brother, I happened to discover a relatively safe cave dwelling recently.”

Really? I don’t believe it!

Lü Yang sneered inwardly, only because Qing Chen Fairy’s persuasive manner resembled that of Liu Xin, who had once tricked him into cultivating the Innate Dao Book.

This was a trap!

What opportunity in a cave dwelling—just bait.

It seemed he had revealed his wealth.

Seeing that he, a newcomer, had bought so many spirit pills, they probably wanted to lure him out and kill him to take the pills for themselves?

At this thought, Lü Yang showed a look of temptation: “I need to consider it.”

“There’s no rush.”

Qing Chen Fairy nodded slightly at his words: “The acceptance procedures have already been completed. You can contact me once you’ve made up your mind.”

“I’ve made up my mind—not going.”

Seeing the procedures were done, Lü Yang said nothing more and grabbed the bottle containing the spirit pills before returning to his cave dwelling, leaving Qing Chen Fairy standing there alone.

“???”

Moments later, as she snapped out of it, Qing Chen Fairy nearly ground her silver teeth to bits, her beautiful face filled with murderous intent: “That Lü Yang… actually dared to toy with me!”

Turning away, Qing Chen Fairy soon arrived at another cave dwelling.

Inside the cave, a young Daoist in splendid robes had been waiting for a long time.

Seeing her darkened expression, he immediately frowned as well:

“Did it fail?”

Qing Chen Fairy shook her head: “This person… is a bit too cautious.”

“Moreover, Senior Brother Zhao, this person borrowed money yet didn’t buy the Yin-Yang Immortal Bloom, and instead bought pills. I suspect he never intended to repay the debt.”

“He wants to renege? In his next life, maybe!”

Zhao Xuhe sneered coldly at her words and shook his head: “Did you know? Every new disciple in the Primordial Saint Sect has already been privately marked with a price.”

“And the amount a disciple can borrow from the sect will never exceed his value. This ensures that, no matter what happens, the sect can recover its investment. Flesh, organs, soul… these are all valuable assets, more than enough to repay a debt.”

“He wants to increase his cultivation? Let him.”

“As long as he’s alive, a higher cultivation just makes him more valuable.”

Zhao Xuhe grinned, his teeth seemingly oozing a scent of blood: “When the time comes, we might not only avoid a loss, but even make a profit.”

“Besides, even if he can afford the spirit pills, it doesn’t mean he’ll live long enough to use them, does it?”

“You mean—”

Zhao Xuhe nodded slightly, his words filled with meaning: “Many things are fine… as long as they’re not discovered.”

Hearing this, Qing Chen Fairy’s beautiful eyes lit up at once.