Soon, the puppet summoned by the Hundred Ghosts and Hundred Phantoms Array returned to the creek’s edge, carrying the jade box filled with Cold Spring Dew. As the tiny white figure left the creek, it shook off the ice that had formed from the water, then hopped towards Meng Qi. The puppet carefully cradled the jade box in its short, small hands, and when it reached Meng Qi, it lifted the box high with effort.
With a long exhale, Meng Qi withdrew the hand she had kept near her storage bag and retrieved the jade box from the puppet. From drawing the array to the puppet entering the Nether River, collecting the Stardust Stones, and returning them to the shore, the entire process had cost her nearly a thousand profound-grade spirit stones.
Li Che was completely stunned. He had seen with his own eyes how Meng Qi had spent those profound-grade spirit stones. At first, she had thrown them in batches of ten or so, but once the puppet reached the center of the creek, each handful she threw was nearly a hundred stones. If all medical cultivators had to spend this much to collect a single medicinal ingredient, they would very soon become the poorest group of cultivators in the Three Thousand Worlds!
Meng Qi opened the jade box. It was filled with Cold Spring Dew, which was already rare and precious. But now, it was merely used to store the Stardust Stones. Submerged in the translucent, emerald-color liquid, a dozen or so black Stardust Stones glimmered with faint golden specks.
Each of the Stardust Stones was about half the size of Meng Qi’s fist. Even in the Demon Realm, such large Stardust Stones were rare. Of course, there were even larger ones. When Meng Qi chased Ji Wujiong into the Star Lake, the Stardust Stone Ji Wujiong took was much bigger than the ones she had now. Stones of that size could be placed in an array to absorb the aura of the stars, but since they were currently only needed to heal Yan Xuan, there was no need for such large stones.
“So many,” Li Che marveled at the Stardust Stones in the jade box. A dozen or so—how many people could these things save? Stardust Stones were extremely rare in the Three Thousand Worlds, and while they could still be found in the Demon Realm, only a select few individuals could ever amass such a large number of them.
Now, with the Cold Spring Dew, the Stardust Stones, and the Nirvana Fruit that Meng Qi had, they only lacked the Netherworld Thorn.
Meng Qi and Li Che both turned their gaze at the dense growth of Netherworld Thorns by the creek. “The Netherworld Thorn is extremely toxic,” Li Che said as he walked towards it. He stopped about a meter away from the thorns and looked at them. “It’s said that just a mere touch could poison a cultivator, corroding their spiritual sense, spiritual sea, aura, meridians, and flesh. Within the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, a cultivator’s body, soul, and cultivation will be destroyed, with no cure, leading to their death.”
Deep in thought, the young medical cultivator quietly observed the Netherworld Thorn, maintaining a careful distance.
“That’s right,” Meng Qi nodded and walked towards Li Che.
The two stood side by side, neither speaking for a while.
A breeze passed, creating small ripples on the creek’s surface, then moved on to the banks to rustle the leaves of the Netherworld Thorn. The tiny, delicate leaves swayed gently in the wind as if beckoning Meng Qi and Li Che to hurry and pluck them.
…
“Ha.” The black-robed sword cultivator still sat at the edge of the distant cliff. His legs dangled over the edge, gently swaying. The corners of his lips curled into a faint smile.
“What do you think they’ll do next?” He didn’t turn around, but his tone was laced with clear mockery. His eyes held a subtle hint of sarcasm, and his long fingers, gripping his sword, tapped lightly against the edge of the cliff.
“Isn’t it time for you medical cultivators to display your great self-sacrifice?” The black-robed sword cultivator still didn’t turn around, but it was clear his words were directed at his white-haired colleague.
“Sacrificing yourself to save others,” the black-robed sword cultivator sneered, his tone dripping with irony as he spoke of the medical cultivators’ supposed selflessness.
“Hmph.” The white-haired medical cultivator snorted coldly as if he was too lazy to engage in a war of words with the black-robed sword cultivator. His gaze was fixed on the distant scene, and he muttered, “What will they do next…”
Even he was uncertain about what Meng Qi and Li Che would do. The Netherworld Thorn was extremely toxic—this didn’t need to be pointed out by others, as medical cultivators were well aware of it. But to heal Yan Xuan, the Netherworld Thorn was essential.
“They have two people, don’t they?” The black-robed sword cultivator spoke again, with a tone full of schadenfreude, as if he relished the upcoming tragedy. “Even if one of them sacrifices themselves, the other can take the Netherworld Thorn obtained with that life and use it to save their companion.”
The white-haired medical cultivator remained silent, quietly observing Meng Qi and Li Che.
This… might indeed be their only option now.
“If that girl still has enough profound-grade spirit stones, perhaps she could try using the array again,” the black-robed sword cultivator added, but his tone sounded uncertain. Earlier, he had assumed Meng Qi only had a couple of hundred profound-grade spirit stones, but who would have guessed she could pull out nearly a thousand just to retrieve the Stardust Stones? Now he wasn’t so sure—if that little girl could produce another thousand stones, could she repeat what she did earlier?
“I’m afraid not,” said the red-robed spell cultivator, who had been mostly silent. She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “That’s the Netherworld Thorn we’re talking about.”
The white-haired medical cultivator nodded in agreement. “Have you forgotten? Even back then, when his inner core was destroyed, Lin Yan wanted to save him, but she could only…”
He didn’t finish his sentence, but his two companions understood.
They lived in the ancient era when array cultivators were still as renowned as the sword, spell, and medical cultivators. Even then, during an age when countless powerful cultivators flourished and each cultivation branch produced brilliant stars year after year, obtaining the Netherworld Thorn was an extremely dangerous task, even for those far more powerful than Meng Qi. After all, if a cultivator’s inner core could be easily restored, then no one would fear its destruction, wouldn’t it?
“Hmph.” The black-robed sword cultivator snorted again, tapping his fingers lightly on the cliffside. “Then they have no choice but to sacrifice one of them now,” he said, his tone growing more excited. His eyes flicked between Meng Qi and Li Che, and with a gleam of interest, he turned to his two companions. “Why don’t we make a bet on which one of them will voluntarily sacrifice themselves?”
The white-haired medical cultivator frowned slightly, his expression darkening as he silently watched Meng Qi and Li Che. The red-robed spell cultivator shot the black-robed sword cultivator a glare and said, “This isn’t something to be happy about, so shut your mouth.”
“I bet it’ll be that guy. His talent isn’t as good as the girl’s, and he can’t use arrays. Even if he survives, he won’t be of much help, so he might as well sacrifice himself for the girl to heal that other guy.” The black-robed sword cultivator didn’t take her colleague’s words seriously and continued, chuckling as he spoke. “None of them could make it through the next challenges with their current combat power. If that other guy is healed, he’ll be much more useful.”
“Enough! Stop talking!” The red-robed spell cultivator snapped, her voice filled with frustration. She glanced worriedly at the white-haired medical cultivator beside her, then softened her tone, “If they get stuck here, we’ll be stuck here too.”
“Oh, come on,” the black-robed sword cultivator shrugged, unbothered by her tone. He continued to watch Meng Qi and Li Che with interest, suddenly jumping up in excitement. “Look! Quickly, look!”
“That girl really is…” he murmured, at a rare loss for words. “That girl really is rich.”
…
Inside the Seven Emotions Array, Meng Qi sheathed her knife, and another precise and intricate Hundred Ghosts and Hundred Phantoms Array appeared before her and Li Che. Holding the knife horizontally, she reached into her storage pouch with her left hand and, with a casual flick, nearly a hundred profound-grade spirit stones flew into the array, swiftly embedding themselves across it.
“…” Even though Li Che was already aware of Meng Qi’s considerable stash of spirit stones, he was still stunned by the sight. The nearly hundred profound-grade spirit stones filled the entire array, emitting a bright, dazzling light. The brilliance was almost blinding, and Li Che couldn’t help but be mesmerized by the sight. As a fellow medical cultivator, he knew that even his own master likely wouldn’t carry this many profound-grade spirit stones.
Amidst the flickering light, the lines of the Hundred Ghosts and Hundred Phantoms Array merged into one, and a white figure slowly emerged from the center of the array. This time, what appeared was no longer a simple human-shaped little puppet. What emerged first were wings, softly twitching before unfurling gracefully amidst the brilliant light. Although it was only a white phantom, the wings appeared so vivid and precise that one could almost make out each individual feather.
Next, a pointed beak was formed, followed by a graceful, elegant body… Under Li Che’s astonished gaze, the figure soared straight into the sky.
Li Che subconsciously followed the soaring figure with his eyes. Although he couldn’t hear the true, crisp call of a crane, it was as if the sound of a crane’s cry echoed in his ears. The slender, graceful phantom crane spread its wings, made a circle in the air, and then descended towards Meng Qi.
“Go,” Meng Qi commanded, tilting her delicate chin towards the Netherworld Thorn. The white phantom crane ascended again, made another circle in the air, and then swooped down towards the bank of the creek.
< Previous | TOC | Advanced TOC | Next>
Translator’s Note:
Extra chapter on Sunday!
Wants more chapters?
Click this page for the status of sponsored chapters.
Click this page for advanced chapters TOC.