"You're an imperial prince?"
Qi Yuan was somewhat stunned.
This guy truly possessed a protagonist template. Not only did he harbor a remnant soul within his body, but he was also an imperial prince and even had an ex-fiancée who had broken off their engagement.
"For the Dragon Contention, the Sect Master has permitted me to select two Foundation Establishment cultivators from within the sect to assist me. For the first, I chose Senior Brother Kang Fulu. For the second, I would like to implore Eldest Senior Brother Qi Yuan to help me participate in the Dragon Contention. If you assist me, Senior Brother Qi Yuan, I will surely present you with a lavish gift. Regardless of whether we succeed, I will definitely bestow three Jade-grade arts and three Foundation Establishment Dharma treasures. If we succeed, I will open the imperial palace treasury for you to choose at will."
Dong Xian spoke with earnest sincerity.
These were already the most valuable things he could offer at present. They were also his everything.
Listening to this, Qi Yuan felt utterly uninterested. "The Dragon Contention requires going to the Great Shang Capital. It's too far. I don't want to go. I just like staying at home."
That time he went to wipe out the Black Mountain Sect, Qi Yuan had rushed back overnight. He disliked wandering around outside, especially sleeping away from home.
Dong Xian was taken aback upon hearing this. Wasn't this reason for refusal a bit too ridiculous?
"Since there's nothing else, I'm heading back to cultivate." One couldn't get too close to someone with a protagonist template like Dong Xian. If he became the protagonist's helper, there was a good chance he might be killed off by the plot one day just to ignite an explosive surge in the protagonist's inner cosmos. Qi Yuan was all too familiar with that kind of storyline.
"Senior Brother Qi Yuan, I am willing to offer higher terms! If you are unsatisfied, Senior Brother, we can discuss it further!" Dong Xian said hurriedly.
"Too far, don't want to go." Qi Yuan refused decisively, returning to his wooden cabin to continue cultivating.
Outside the wooden house, disappointment washed over Dong Xian's face.
"Elder Qi, were the terms I offered not enough?" Dong Xian asked, deeply downcast.
"Perhaps it has nothing to do with your terms. What Qi Yuan said just now might be true—he really doesn't want to travel far," Elder Qi said helplessly. "It is normal for some geniuses to harbor eccentricities, especially cultivators of the Obsession lineage."
"Sigh." Hearing this, Dong Xian clenched his fists, thoroughly unwilling to accept it.
This time, when he prepared to participate in the Dragon Contention, he had informed his imperial mother. His mother hailed from a small clan that possessed only a single Foundation Establishment cultivator. That Foundation Establishment cultivator was his maternal uncle. Without a second thought, his uncle had handed over the only two Foundation Establishment Dharma treasures he owned. His imperial mother had also given him all the spirit medicines and Dharma treasures bestowed upon her by the Emperor.
Only because of this had he barely managed to persuade Kang Fulu.
Now, if he could not convince Qi Yuan, his chances in the Dragon Contention would be exceedingly slim. He could not bear to fail the expectations of his mother and uncle.
He stood silently outside the wooden cabin, waiting like a devoted disciple standing in the snow at his master's gate.
Suddenly, Dong Xian's transmission jade slip stirred.
It was a message from Senior Brother Kang Fulu.
He glanced at the contents and froze.
"Elder Qi, do you know what Senior Brother Kang Fulu just told me?"
"What?"
"Senior Brother Kang Fulu said a secret realm has appeared in Rong City. The location of the Dragon Contention has been changed to Rong City!"
"What?!!"
Rong City was extremely close to Seven Colors Peak; even a Qi Refinement cultivator could arrive there within an hour or two.
Just moments ago, Senior Brother Qi Yuan had said it was too far and he didn't want to go. And now, the location of the Dragon Contention had been moved to Rong City.
*Is destiny aiding me?* Dong Xian thought, overwhelmed with excitement.
"Senior Brother Qi Yuan, Dong Xian requests an audience!" Joy beamed across Dong Xian's face as he shouted toward the wooden cabin.
Qi Yuan stepped out of the house. "You haven't left yet?"
"Senior Brother Qi Yuan, the location of the Dragon Contention has changed—it's moved to Rong City!" Dong Xian's voice trembled with excitement.
Hearing this, Qi Yuan was dumbfounded. "In Rong City?"
That was way too close. Why had it suddenly been changed to Rong City?
"It is absolutely true; Senior Brother Kang Fulu told me himself." White vapor puffed from Dong Xian's mouth as he spoke in the cold. "May I now invite Senior Brother Qi Yuan to assist me in the Dragon Contention?"
Standing there, Qi Yuan could not help marveling inwardly. Was this truly the protagonist template? Even the heavens stepped in to solve his problems!
Qi Yuan felt that if he continued to be obstinate, the heavens might very well wipe him out instead. But since the heavens were aiding Dong Xian, couldn't he seize the opportunity to make an exorbitant demand?
After a moment's hesitation, Qi Yuan said slowly, "I can help you, but I have a few conditions."
Dong Xian's face lit up with excitement. "Senior Brother, please speak freely."
"I want a Dharma treasure capable of slaying an innate saint."
Dong Xian froze. "...Senior Brother Qi Yuan, are you joking?"
"Then I want the cultivation base to ascend in broad daylight."
Dong Xian fell into stunned silence. If he had the power to grant that, would he still come begging Senior Brother Qi Yuan to participate in the Dragon Contention?
"That won't work either?" Qi Yuan sighed helplessly. "Then give me the sun in the sky. I want to refine it into a Golden Core."
"..."
"Not that either?" Qi Yuan felt thoroughly disappointed. In the end, he compromised, "Forget it. Just give me a secret technique that can enhance divine soul strength."
This was already his bare minimum requirement.
Hearing this, the corner of Dong Xian's mouth twitched uncontrollably. The condition Senior Brother Qi Yuan proposed this time didn't seem quite as absurd—but that was only in comparison to the previous ones! A secret technique to enhance the divine soul? In the entire Great Shang, there probably weren't even one or two such secret arts!
Strengthening the divine soul was of paramount importance. Cultivators at the Divine Infant stage who wished to advance to the Purple Mansion realm had to overcome the Three Disasters and Three Tribulations, all of which were attacks targeted directly at the soul. Thus, any Divine Infant cultivator who wished to break through to the Purple Mansion realm had to first strengthen their divine soul; otherwise, no matter how profound their Dao techniques or how boundless their magic power, they would fail to survive the tribulations and perish on the spot.
For this reason, techniques that augmented the divine soul were exceedingly rare, and even if any existed, they were held tightly in the hands of old Divine Infant monsters. A technique capable of strengthening the divine soul was far more precious than Profound-grade arts, or even Heaven-grade arts.
Dong Xian wore a troubled expression. He didn't even possess a Profound-grade art, let alone a technique to strengthen the divine soul.
"Qi Yuan..." Dong Xian began to speak.
Right at that moment, Elder Qi transmitted his voice from within Dong Xian's body: *"Agree to it. I have an art that enhances the divine soul."*
Hearing this, Dong Xian was filled first with pleasant surprise, then with profound gratitude. *"Elder Qi, I..."* His eyes grew hot, and turning back to Qi Yuan, he said, "Eldest Senior Brother, I can agree to this condition."
Qi Yuan was slightly surprised. In truth, he hadn't expected Dong Xian to actually produce an art that enhanced the soul. After a moment of thought, he finally nodded. "Hand over the art, and I'll help you."
A technique to augment the divine soul was indeed excellent, and Qi Yuan had an urgent need for one. If he wanted to unlock the second game, he had to strengthen his soul.
"Please wait two days, Eldest Senior Brother. I will deliver the technique then."
"Very well."
***
Two days later, Dong Xian presented a jade slip to Qi Yuan.
"Senior Brother Qi Yuan, recorded here is a secret technique to strengthen the divine soul. However, Senior Brother must take care not to cultivate it excessively. During cultivation, the pain will be agonizing, as though your soul is being torn apart. If overcultivated, it may even inflict severe damage upon your soul," Dong Xian warned earnestly.
Taking the jade slip, Qi Yuan nodded. "Alright, I'll keep that in mind."
He returned to his wooden cabin and sent his divine sense into the jade slip.
"Hundred Temperings Soul Augmentation Art?"
[This is an ordinary art for augmenting the divine soul. It contains 250 flaws. After revision, the cultivation effect will triple, and the pain will also triple.]
This technique was true to its name. During cultivation, one condensed part of their soul into a hammer to relentlessly strike the rest of the soul, tempering it like steel forged a hundred or ten thousand times into a divine blade. Naturally, pounding one's own soul with a hammer was excruciatingly painful.
Qi Yuan pondered for a moment, sat down on a wooden stool, and began to perfect the art. The technique was difficult; even with his eyes able to see prompts, it took him ten full days to finish revising it.
"Finally ready to cultivate. I hope it won't hurt too much. I'm terrified of pain—I don't even dare look when getting an injection."
Qi Yuan began cultivating the modified *Hundred Temperings Soul Augmentation Art*. A colossal hammer materialized, pounding his divine soul repeatedly.
"Huh? Why doesn't it hurt?" Qi Yuan was somewhat surprised.
He had thought that continuously hammering his own soul would be excruciating. But to his astonishment, he felt nothing at all; it was like playing Whac-A-Mole, rather entertaining.
Qi Yuan's divine soul grew steadily.
After an unknown amount of time, a somewhat familiar voice suddenly drifted into his ears once more:
"I've killed the very last person in this world related to me by blood. Even though she struck first, still... heheh, I truly am an evil woman."
Qi Yuan listened closely—wasn't that little Ning Tao's voice?
Yet her voice was no longer sweet and babyish. It had turned cold and sharp, completely lacking its former cuteness.
Qi Yuan thought about it and couldn't resist replying, "If you killed her, so be it. Your character setting is an evil woman anyway. Isn't it completely normal for an evil woman to kill people?"
After speaking, Qi Yuan heard no further reply and continued cultivating the *Hundred Temperings Soul Augmentation Art*.
***
Liufeng Realm.
The young girl had reached the tender age of blooming youth. Her face was veiled in black silk, yet the exposed half alone revealed breathtaking beauty. Clad in a black dress, she held a Death Scythe in her hand. Blood dripped steadily from the blade.
She looked down at the bodies on the ground, filled with melancholy. Blood and corpses littered the earth.
Suddenly, a familiar voice drifted into her ears.
Ning Tao's eyes registered momentary blankness, followed by immense surprise. "Uncle, you're here?"
Sadly, no one answered her. She stood in place, her slender figure appearing terribly lonely.
"Uncle? Have you left?"
Still, there was no reply.
She did not leave, standing where she was for two entire hours, seemingly waiting for something.
Standing all alone, she seemed exceptionally lonely, carrying an aura of blood-soaked beauty.
Unfortunately, what she awaited never came; instead, enemies arrived.
"The evil woman is still here! Kill her quickly!"
"Die, demoness!"
A mob rushed toward her. A sweet smile flickered in Ning Tao's eyes.
"Uncle, it seems you support me too. If I am an evil woman, then I will slaughter this world into utter ruin."
Lifting the Death Scythe, her tall, slender figure resembled a blooming death rose beneath the setting sun.
The slaughter began once again.
And then it ended.
"Uncle, I have to go now. If another wave of enemies comes, your gentle and delicate little wife will die right here, *hehehe*." She chuckled with deliberate coquettishness.
***
"Not bad. My divine soul has grown quite a bit, and I'm a little closer to that game icon."
Still, it remained rather distant. Qi Yuan estimated that if he progressed step by step, it would probably take another three months before he could enter that game.
"Too slow, so boring."
Qi Yuan walked out of the cabin to bask in the sun.
Days when the snow melted were colder than usual. On Seven Colors Peak now, the palaces and pavilions on the summit remained wrapped in silver, while the snow on the lower slopes had mostly thawed.
"Master, do you want to come down and sunbathe with me?" Qi Yuan shouted toward the summit.
Predictably, no one responded.
"Once I reach Origin Core, I'll be able to go up the mountain to see Master. Sigh, reaching Origin Core is so hard."
Qi Yuan felt utterly helpless. Reaching Origin Core truly was difficult. He hadn't progressed very far with his Foundation Establishment cultivation art yet; he was merely at the early Foundation Establishment stage. He needed an art that could carry him all the way to Origin Core before he could step into that realm. Before reaching Origin Core, his master couldn't be bothered to see him at all. His shout inviting her to sunbathe naturally went unanswered.
Just then, Jiang Lingsu's slightly frail voice sounded: "Senior Brother, I'll keep you company in the sun."
Jiang Lingsu walked out of her room. Her complexion looked poor—pale, bloodless, and seemingly touched by frost, as though she had just stepped out of a freezer.
"Junior Sister, what happened to you?" Qi Yuan looked at Jiang Lingsu and reached out his hand.
Jiang Lingsu hesitated briefly, then placed her soft hand into Qi Yuan's.
Cold, freezing cold. Qi Yuan felt as though he were holding a block of ice.
"No... nothing, just an old ailment." Jiang Lingsu reclined on the lounge chair beside Qi Yuan. She did not withdraw her hand, finding her senior brother's touch remarkably warm.
Qi Yuan's gaze fell upon Jiang Lingsu's pale face.
[This is an ordinary young girl. She feels rather cold right now.]
The prompts his eyes gleaned regarding intelligent beings were mostly random, so Qi Yuan couldn't discern what was ailing her.
"Junior Sister, are you cold? Let me warm you with my passion." Saying this, Qi Yuan circulated his Five Elements Fire, slowly channeling warmth into Jiang Lingsu.
Jiang Lingsu was a wealthy woman, his junior sister, and had even taken such a massive blame for him last time. Toward his own junior sister, he naturally had to be considerate.
Warm qi spread from her eldest senior brother's hand. Jiang Lingsu felt thoroughly warmed and was quite astonished. She hadn't expected Eldest Senior Brother to actually be able to alleviate her pain.
She said, "To completely eradicate this ailment of mine, a Water-attribute Heavenly Spirit Root cultivator at the Purple Mansion realm must intervene. It doesn't hurt as much now. Thank you, Eldest Senior Brother."
"It actually requires the Purple Mansion realm?" Qi Yuan was amazed. "Once I cultivate to the Great Luo Golden Immortal realm, I will definitely capture a Purple Mansion cultivator to cure your injury."
"Pfft... ow..." A smile instinctively broke across Jiang Lingsu's face, immediately followed by a wince of pain. "Eldest Senior Brother, please stop talking, you're too funny. My chest hurts whenever I laugh."
Hearing this, Qi Yuan felt wronged. He had spoken with absolute sincerity, only to be treated like a comedian.
"How about I knead it for you from a distance?" Remembering how he had offended his junior sister last time, Qi Yuan felt his words this time displayed high emotional intelligence. The words "from a distance" neither offended the maiden nor compromised gentlemanly conduct.
"Shut your mouth!" Jiang Lingsu truly wished she had a needle to sew her eldest senior brother's mouth shut.
Qi Yuan fell silent. He wouldn't stoop to arguing with a sick person.
At the same time, he reflected on what he had said wrong to incur his junior sister's displeasure. Could it be that doing it from a distance, while courteous, lacked sincerity?
"Senior Brother, thank you," Jiang Lingsu murmured softly.
"Don't mention it," Qi Yuan said.
"Don't talk."
"..."
"Let me tell you some good news. My application for your membership in the Divine Flower Society has passed review."
Qi Yuan nodded, pleasantly surprised.
"This is the token of the Divine Flower Society." Jiang Lingsu drew a unique jade slip from her bosom with her left hand and explained, "This jade slip is custom-made and worth ten thousand spirit stones."
Qi Yuan was instantly stunned. Ten thousand spirit stones for just this? That was comparable to an Origin Core Dharma treasure!
This junior sister was ridiculously rich! No wonder ordinary people couldn't join the Divine Flower Society; they couldn't even afford the token.
Sadly, he wasn't allowed to speak right now. He desperately wanted to pull out Xiao Jia's "cuddle" sign to express his deep reverence for this wealthy woman.
"It's yours now. From this day forward, you are a member of the Divine Flower Society." Jiang Lingsu handed the jade slip to Qi Yuan.
Qi Yuan took the jade slip, and Jiang Lingsu continued, "Split off a wisp of your divine soul and infuse it inside, and the jade slip will recognize you as its master. The function of this jade slip goes far beyond a simple token. Except for certain special locations, members of our Divine Flower Society can communicate through this jade slip no matter where they are."
Following Jiang Lingsu's instructions, he divided a wisp of his soul into it. In an instant, the jade slip recognized him as master.
A deluge of information flooded his mind, and a look of astonishment appeared on Qi Yuan's face.
Wasn't this just QQ combined with an online forum?
He discovered that this jade slip functioned like a smartphone with numerous modules.
One module resembled QQ, similar to ordinary transmission jade slips but as an enhanced version with far more functions.
Furthermore, there was a dedicated space for Divine Flower Society members to interact, exactly like a forum.
Qi Yuan was rather amazed. Indeed, even if cultivators hadn't unlocked the technological tree, many things ended up identical.
A smug smile surfaced in Jiang Lingsu's eyes. "Senior Brother, is this your first time seeing such an advanced jade slip? Any thoughts?"
Chapter 82