Originally, Mu Baiyi had not cared who Cult Master Qin's reincarnation was. Given how destitute Qin Haoran had been, could there really be any wealth left in his legacy?
Anything valuable would have been sold off long ago; how could it have survived until now?
Yet he could not bluntly tell this to the three vice cult masters. If they discovered that the Nine Nether Cult had no money left, all hell would break loose.
Besides, all three vice cult masters had more seniority than him. If the three of them wanted to fight over Qin Haoran's legacy, let them fight. What did whoever won it have to do with him?
Now, however, things were different. The sheer might of the Heavenly Court Cult was right before their eyes. Even if Qin Yanyan was not the reincarnation, she had to be!
Gender was not an issue; no rule dictated that one's gender had to remain unchanged after reincarnation.
Furthermore, the Heavenly Court Cult possessed Dou Tianzun and the ancient ancestor of the Phoenix Clan. Weren't they vastly more formidable than the three vice cult masters? The person they found was bound to be reliable.
If they truly could locate Cult Master Qin's reincarnation, that would be the best possible outcome. It would become the very first confirmed case proving the true existence of samsara and reincarnation!
For the Nine Nether Cult, there was no better news.
Hadn't they labored so hard to construct Fengdu for this very purpose?
Seeing that no more useful information could be gleaned from Mu Baiyi, Eldest Senior Sister bid farewell and rose directly to depart.
As the members of the Heavenly Court Cult left one after another, Mu Baiyi and his protectors finally breathed a long sigh of relief.
Cult Master Yun's aura was simply too overwhelming. Even sitting opposite her had turned his legs to jelly, to say nothing of the protectors standing behind him.
"Phew—they're finally gone."
From start to finish, Mu Baiyi had hardly dared to breathe, his heart in his throat the entire time, terrified that a single slip of the tongue might provoke the wrath of those two ancient mighty figures.
Riding a cloud, Eldest Senior Sister brought Lu Yang and the others back to the Dao Seeking Sect. Only after the four elders who had been brought along to bolster their presence departed did she analyze the origins of the Nine Nether Cult.
Matters involving immortals were fraught with danger. Knowing about them offered no benefit to the elders, only harm, so it was better that they remained in the dark.
Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou were already entangled in the affair, so there was no harm in them knowing.
"The role of the Nine Nether Cult differs from what was anticipated."
"Originally, I believed the purpose of founding the Nine Nether Cult was identical to that of founding the Immortal Cult: to condense a rudimentary Dao fruit."
"Judging by the circumstances surrounding the Nine Nether Cult's founder, the 'rudimentary Reincarnation Dao fruit' existed first, and only then came the Nine Nether Cult."
"Who on earth condensed the 'rudimentary Reincarnation Dao fruit'?"
"Why don't we ask Junior Brother Li? As the ninth reincarnation, he should know more than Mu Baiyi," Lu Yang suggested.
Li Haoran was the most compelling proof of the reality of 'reincarnation.' Furthermore, having retained Qin Haoran's memories, he definitely knew more than Mu Baiyi.
"Very well."
Eldest Senior Sister acted with swift decisiveness. The moment she decided to ask, she led the group straight to the Fifth Peak.
"He's in seclusion?"
Li Haoran's immortal cave was shut tight, with a layer of dust accumulated at the entrance, indicating that he had been in seclusion for at least a month.
"He is preparing to break through to the Nascent Soul stage." Eldest Senior Sister swept her divine sense inward, immediately discerning what Li Haoran was doing inside.
"Judging by the progress of his cultivation, he will break through to the Nascent Soul stage in half a day. Let's wait."
"All right."
Half a day passed in the blink of an eye for cultivators.
"He's about to break through."
A fluctuating aura surged from the depths of the cave—the unmistakable harbinger of breaking through to the Nascent Soul stage.
The aura within the cave surged and ebbed like a raging tsunami or a long-suppressed volcano; it only needed an outlet to erupt!
*Boom—*
The moment the aura reached its critical threshold, the power harbored within the Golden Core burst forth completely like a volcanic eruption. The terrifyingly dense fiery energy did not even breach the cave!
The immortal caves provided by the Dao Seeking Sect to its disciples were exceptionally high-grade, more than capable of containing the aura of shattering the core to form the nascent soul.
Meng Jingzhou had been an exception; he had done it on purpose.
The terrifying fiery power converged back into its master's body. With a rumbling crash, the cave door swung open, followed by Li Haoran's hearty laughter: "Hahaha, I've finally reached the Nascent Soul stage!"
Then he spotted Eldest Senior Sister and the others seated at the entrance, and his laughter came to an abrupt halt.
"G-good day, Eldest Senior Sister."
"Yes, good day to you as well."
"..."
Caught completely off guard by Eldest Senior Sister's sudden presence, Li Haoran was at a loss for words.
"First steady your aura. Extreme joy or sorrow is ill-advised right after a breakthrough."
"Oh, right."
Li Haoran hastily sat cross-legged where he was, silently reciting the Calming Heart Mantra to steady his aura and harmonize his body.
When he opened his eyes again, he was greeted by Meng Jingzhou's massive face, which startled him out of his wits.
"Senior Brother Meng, what are you doing? You scared me to death!"
"Observing what kind of Nascent Soul you formed to see if I can borrow it."
"Well, did you figure it out?"
"Nope."
Li Haoran's mouth twitched. Was that something one could deduce merely by getting closer? He shoved Meng Jingzhou's broad face away. "Then back up a bit. I'll give you a demonstration."
With Eldest Senior Sister present, it was the perfect opportunity to show off.
Li Haoran summoned his Nascent Soul. Its color differed from everyone else's: a red Nascent Soul forged entirely of flames.
"A Nascent Soul that absorbed two kinds of True Fire?" Both Eldest Senior Sister and Jiang Lianyi had seen many cultivators at the Nascent Soul stage. Especially Jiang Lianyi—in the ancient era, geniuses had emerged in droves; what kind of Nascent Soul had she not encountered?
Except for those of Lu Yang, Meng Jingzhou, and Man Gu.
"There is a chance that a Nascent Soul formed by a cultivator with a Fire Spiritual Root will become such an entity. Because its entire body consists of flames and it resembles an infant, the cultivation world commonly refers to this type of Nascent Soul as..."
Lu Yang blurted out, "Red Boy?"
Eldest Senior Sister cast a sidelong glance at Lu Yang. "A fire nascent soul."
"Still, it is merely a matter of naming. Just as Junior Brother Meng's Bachelor Spiritual Root is alternatively known as the Pure Yang Spiritual Root, if you prefer to call the fire nascent soul Red Boy, that works as well."
"Ignite!"
Li Haoran bellowed. Under the influence of the fire nascent soul, blazing True Fire erupted across his body, warding off any approaching enemy.
"Does this Nascent Soul of yours have any other uses?" Meng Jingzhou asked again.
Li Haoran laughed heartily and reined in the True Fire. "Of course it does."
"Though they're mostly theoretical. Hold on, let me build it up."
Li Haoran furrowed his brow and fell silent for a long while. Drawing the Nascent Soul back into his body, he gritted his teeth as groans of agony escaped him.
With a resounding *bang*, Li Haoran's body detonated, blowing apart into scattered pieces! His limbs, torso, and head flew off in different directions, giving Meng Jingzhou quite a fright.
Had Junior Brother Li finally snapped under the agony of being a kept man and committed suicide out of depression?
Just then, Li Haoran's head flew freely through the air, even executing somersaults and rolls, as he explained with a laugh, "Don't panic, Senior Brother Meng! This is my Nascent Soul's ability."
As he spoke, Li Haoran's limbs and torso began to move, striking various poses, clearly under deliberate control.
"The Rebirth Golden Core allowed me to regenerate severed limbs. After reaching the Nascent Soul stage, this ability was enhanced. Even if my body is dismembered like this, I can still control and reform it."
"However, regenerating a head takes too much out of me, so I decided to do this."
The limbs and torso assembled into a new headless figure, executing various techniques, while Li Haoran's head hovered in the distance with a triumphant smirk.
"This way, my head won't get hurt."
Chapter 645