Chapter 40: Secret News
Translator: Sparrow Translations Editor: Sparrow Translations
Song Zhong, the previous elder of the Spirit Returning Sect, had been executed!
The news travelled far and wide within the entire Qinghe County, and of course, there was another not-so-credible rumour which said that if the one who gave the final strike was a young man, he must be highly skilled and therefore deserving of the rewards the Sect had promised.
Many martial artists did not believe that a young man could take down Song Zhong.
Who was Song Zhong? He was a renowned fearsome martial artist of the 7th Gate and an expert in inner force!
Even the eldest disciple of Spirit Returning Sect, Lin Leiyue could not hold a candle to Song Zhong. How skilful would the young man be to dare challenge the Spirit Returning Sect's top disciple?
This must be a rumour!
Song Zhong was likely to have been taken down by a skilled Spirit Returning Sect member.
Just by his cultivation level alone would allow him to wreck havoc in Qinghe County.
Only a few who knew the truth became a little worried after hearing the rumours.
...
"Fang Yuan, are you really leaving?"
He was at a small pavilion near the outskirts of Qinghe County.
Lin Leiyue appeared confused and looked at the young man on a horse. "Just by seeing your potential in martial arts cultivation alone, you can enter the Spirit Returning Sect and become a direct disciple..."
"My apologies, I have been used to exploring the wild, and cannot tolerate being confined... Sister Leiyue, I shall see you when we meet again!"
Fang Yuan rejected her offer, whipped the horse and galloped away. Not long after, he disappeared within the horizon.
The many people within the Sect, and the main troublemaker, Lin Leiyue, would bring many problems to Fang Yuan if he were to accept her offer.
Knowing this, why would he stay long in the county?
After trading for what he wanted, Fang Yuan left the country without hesitation.
However, as for Lin Leiyue, looking at his shadow disappearing in the horizon brought much disappointment as she felt conflicted.
"Are you feeling regretful?"
With a flash, Shi Yutong appeared within the pavilion like a ghost.
"He has his path to go, and I have mine. Since he made the decision, what more can we do?"
Lin Leiyue raised her head and stubbornly replied.
"Mmm... That's good!"
Shi Yutong noded her head with satisfaction and looked in the direction where Fang Yuan left. "But, this fiancé of yours has shocking potential and is not the average person!"
"He..."
Lin Leiyue became excited. "Master... Please enlighten me!"
"Keke..."
Shi Yutong snickered, and touched her nose. "Girl, you have become competitive... Don't worry, to me, you still have the greatest potential among your peers!"
"Then why was it that previously..."
Lin Leiyue was sceptical. Against Song Zhong, she could only withstand his fists and defend, but Fang Yuan could retaliate head-on and therefore everything felt illogical.
"That was because that young man had a good foundation... Leiyue, you should have known. There are people who are able to harness and use their martial arts the moment they begin to learn it, and can even become Martial Artist (4th or 5th Gate)! Fang Yuan is as such, either he has a great natural talent, or that he had consumed some spiritual food or treasure, and based on your description, Song Zhong was at the brink of death and had used up most of his inner force, and fight after fight, he could be exhausted to death and I wouldn't be surprised..."
Shi Yutong explained.
She felt that it was a pity that the young man had such great potential. He had exceedingly high Essence, Spirit and Magic. If his magical energy was many folds more of the average human, he would be a well-known legendary spiritual knight.
But for this, even if he would be outstanding in his youth, his age would catch up.
After all, inner force was magical and cannot seem to be depleted when one was harnessing it.
No matter one's foundation, those who had the inner force befitting of the 3 Perilous Gates would undergo a drastic change in their bodies.
Those with better physical quality would experience slower progress when they reach this stage, albeit still having a small advantage over the others, but it would not be as obvious as before.
Shi Yutong looked at her disciple and commented, "Leiyue, don't be discouraged. You have gained through this experience. If you can break through the 6th Gate, you would be the first among the young people within Qinghe County!"
"Yes, Master!"
Lin Leiyue clenched her fist, looked in the direction with Fang Yuan left, and seemed as though she was not willing to admit defeat.
...
"Go!"
Fang Yuan sped off on his horse, and seeing the scenery beside him fly past, he felt free like a fish in the ocean, a bird in the sky, a tiger in the forest.
Qinghe County was complicated, like a giant trap.
He was still unfamiliar with the outside world, had little relations with the powerful people, and therefore might not be pulled into conflicts.
But that might not be the case if he decided to stay longer within the county, or even join the Spirit Returning Sect.
"At the end of the day, the treasures from the outside world cannot compare to the comfort of my home!"
Fang Yuan smiled to himself.
He had gained a lot from this trip to the county.
Defeating Song Zhong and collecting spiritual plants is one thing, and gaining from the Spirit Returning Sect's hidden library is another.
He was rewarded with the Elemental Returning Order for killing Song Zhong and used it to exchange for a visit to the hidden library.
If he requested for a martial arts manual, he knew he would die and the Elemental Returning Order would not be able to save him.
But if he requested to take a look at the normal books, that would be effortless to the Sect and he would not be denied entry.
Seeing his relationship with Lin Leiyue, Shi Yutong very quickly agreed after he requested for the visit. She allowed Fang Yuan to stay and browse through the books for 3 days.
The only regret Fang Yuan had was being unable to see for himself the real Wu Zong in the legends.
"Hmm... There are so many highly skilled sect members observing me, just not the great Wu Zong!"
Fang Yuan laughed and slowed the horse down.
The truth is that other then the system within his mind, if word of his martial arts spreads out, it would at most be taken as a small miracle.
Without looking at the explanations within the system, who would believe that he had the ability to cultivate spiritual plants, and even allow normal plants to evolve and have special traits?
Because of this, he was unafraid.
It still led him to feel uneasy with so many people spying on him.
"Heh... Spirit Returning Sect, what's so good about you?"
As he was quite a distance from Qinghe County, he slowed the horse down and slowly paced forward.
"But for a price to pay, it was worth it!"
He thought through in the perspective of the sect. After all, he was an outsider and precautions still had to be taken against him. Understanding their rationale was one thing, accepting it was another.
The risk of entering the hidden library was worth it.
Within the many books and literature artefacts, Fang Yuan found what he was looking for.
"I never knew... This world is so huge! Comparatively, a normal martial artist would never have the chance to know the truth... Even the spiritual knights only know the tip of the iceberg, what more about the mysterious alchemy masters and dream masters?"
This information was obtained from a biography of a martial artist, and it was like a treasure to him.
The author of the book was an elder in the sect long ago. He managed to break through every single Gate possible, and by exploring the outside world, he had the chance to exceed Wu Zong.
Although he did not succeed at the end, he passed on not long after returning to the Sect, he left behind lots of discussion and stories of his exploration, and it was an overload of information about the outside world.
Within his discussion, he mentioned the formation of spiritual lands.
"The spiritual land is formed by heaven's will and created by the gathering of earthly energy. It can only be encountered and cannot be created by man…...this sentence is both right and wrong!"
Fang Yuan read on. "It seems that the small spiritual land which the Spirit Returning Sect lives on formed naturally. The first Sect Master knew it was a piece of treasure and shifted the entire Sect to where it was now, using it as a foundation... But there is another type of spiritual land, linked to the cultivators!"
"Rumour has it that there was a highly skilled cultivator, and under certain conditions, like death, it may result in the birth of a new spiritual land."
"Even though this cultivator may not be Wu Zong, whatever recorded was just rumours. But then again, the entire world may have hidden mysteries. Since an alchemy master is able to gain the blessing of the heavens and earth and concoct spiritual pills, another cultivator would be able to create a spiritual land, fertile land…...it is not impossible!
"I just wonder, who was the source of the spiritual land at Green Peak..."
Fang Yuan looked up, staring at the peak of the Clear Spirit Mountain, and felt a sense of familiarity. "I'm home..."
Within the secluded valley.
"Keke! Keke!"
Fang Yuan stepped into the valley, and the Flower Fox Ferret pounced on him, nibbling at his robe, as though it was very excited.
"Eh, why are you so anxious?"
Fang Yuan was shocked as he saw the Flower Fox Ferret running towards the farm, as he sort of guessed what had happened.
"Could it be..."
He was filled with emotions as he rushed out.
Upon reaching the tea forest, a fragrance filled the air, making him feel more refreshed.
"Indeed..."
Fang Yuan was ecstatic, as he saw another tree with the Questioning Heart Tea leaves.
This spiritual plant had new leaves growing and the tea fragrance was intense.
"Keke!"
The Flower Fox Ferret pointed to the soil, and Fang Yuan noticed at the root of the Questioning Heart Tea that there were large amounts of spiritual fertilizer.
"It seems that the Flower Fox Ferret was hard at work while I was away..."
Fang Yuan was left speechless as he witnessed what was before him.
The Flower Fox Ferret was rather proud; it did not care about other normal plants, and only took care of the Questioning Heart Tea and Vermillion Jade Rice.
It could not hold back as it saw the leaves of the Questioning Heart Tea growing out.
"Without my Meditative Tea Ceremony, there would not be any Questioning Heart Tea that would increase your magical energy!"
Fang Yuan stroked the Flower Fox Ferret's head, "Don't worry, you will have your share!"
After reading through the books, he had a deeper understanding of the benefits of the Questioning Heart Tea.
There were different levels of spiritual plants. The lowest level included the Vermillion Jade Rice and the Emerald Grass, but these two could also increase one's Spirit and Essence.
As for spiritual plants which can increase magical energy? It was unheard of, and if people knew about it they would go crazy for it!
In order to be a spiritual knight or alchemy master, the most important factor is magical energy!
Translator's Thoughts
JTJTY97 JTJTY97
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