Preparing to Escape, Seeking Recommendation Tickets

Preparing to Escape, Seeking Recommendation Tickets

Over the next two months, Lu Qingfeng devoted himself to refining Fasting Pills.

He refined two batches each morning and evening, yielding twenty-four Fasting Pills a day.

Before logging off, he had refined a total of 1,780 Fasting Pills. After deducting the portion sold to acquire ingredients for refining Fasting Pills, he had profited a total of 1,234 Fasting Pills.

The exchange rate between ordinary Fasting Pills and Yellow Dragon Pills was five to one, while the Fasting Pills Lu Qingfeng refined exchanged for Yellow Dragon Pills at a rate of four to one.

Thus, 1,234 Fasting Pills converted to 308 Yellow Dragon Pills. He was still short of five hundred, so he could only make up the difference when he logged in again two months later.

Time passed swiftly in "Primordial Wilderness," while only a single night had passed in Blackwood Village.

Traveling back and forth through the Hundredfold Time Difference every day made Lu Qingfeng feel as though a lifetime had passed whenever he logged in or out. He marveled ever more at the might of time.

This day.

It was time to go to Yellow Ganoderma Mountain again.

More than five months had passed in the blink of an eye since Lu Qingshan had entered the Returning Truth Sect.

Yellow Ganoderma Mountain, at the foot of the mountain.

"Big Brother, a few days ago, an Inner Disciple named Wu Yuan came to the Servant Yard to select attendants. I was chosen. There were six Servant Disciples selected in all. Wu Yuan told us to prepare dry rations and follow him across the Chengyang River in three days to gather Spirit Herbs."

After more than five months, Lu Qingshan was still thin, though he looked much sturdier than before. Alone in the Returning Truth Sect, his temperament had changed subtly as well. He was no longer as timid and lacking in conviction as he had once been.

Yet no matter what happened to him in the Returning Truth Sect, Lu Qingshan would tell Lu Qingfeng about it whenever they met every seven days, seeking his brother's advice.

This time, he had been taken in as Wu Yuan's attendant and would even be crossing to the other side of the Chengyang River in three days. Lu Qingshan felt this might be an opportunity, but he could not suppress the unease in his heart.

Every year or two, an official disciple of the Returning Truth Sect would cultivate the Returning Truth Technique to the Fourth Layer and advance to become an Inner Disciple. Inner Disciples had the right to choose Servant Disciples as attendants at their beck and call.

Besides that, the Returning Truth Sect would assign missions to newly promoted Inner Disciples. Most involved crossing to the other side of the Chengyang River to gather Spirit Herbs.

The other side of the Chengyang River was rarely visited by humans and exceptionally dangerous.

All kinds of wild beasts roamed there, and venomous creatures such as snakes, insects, rats, and ants were far from scarce.

Inner Disciples would often bring their newly acquired attendants along, but fewer than one in ten of those attendants returned alive. Even Inner Disciples whose Returning Truth Technique had reached the Fourth Layer might fail to return, left forever on the far bank.

However, once one followed an Inner Disciple through the mission and returned safely, one would generally receive the Inner Disciple's careful guidance and be accepted as a trusted confidant.

"The other side of the Chengyang River?"

After hearing this, Lu Qingfeng could not help furrowing his brow.

Though he had never crossed the river, he had heard since childhood that the beasts on the far bank were even fiercer, and that demons and monsters no weaker than the Returning Truth Sect's "immortals" dwelled there.

Only because the Chengyang River blocked the demons and monsters were they unable to threaten Blackwood Village.

Cross the river?

Not a single person in Blackwood Village dared!

And more than five months ago, when he had learned that Lu Qingshan had been selected as a servant of the Returning Truth Sect, this had been why the two brothers had reacted as they did.

The mortality rate among the Returning Truth Sect's Servant Disciples was extremely high!

Of one hundred servants entering together, fewer than ten would still be alive three years later. Of the ninety who died, only around ten had perished on Yellow Ganoderma Mountain due to various problems. The remaining seventy or eighty had all died across the river, reduced to rations for demons and monsters!

"What has it been like in previous years?" Lu Qingfeng asked, still harboring a sliver of hope.

"For missions like this, one Inner Disciple takes six Servant Disciples across the river. With exceptionally good luck, four or five Servant Disciples can come back. With bad luck, the entire party may be wiped out. There's no certainty. The old hands in the Returning Truth Sect say missions like this generally depend on luck."

Lu Qingshan was afraid deep down.

But an Inner Disciple stood above even official disciples, exalted beyond measure compared to Servant Disciples like them. Having been selected by Wu Yuan as a personal attendant, he had no room to resist.

In the past, he would surely have been at his wits' end.

Yet now he could steady himself and ask Lu Qingfeng for advice. He had truly improved greatly during this time.

"Luck—"

Lu Qingfeng shook his head. "You cannot entrust life and death to illusory, intangible luck."

"Big Brother."

Lu Qingshan did not understand what Lu Qingfeng meant.

He cautiously glanced around, then leaned close to Lu Qingfeng's ear. "Big Brother, actually, my luck is very good. Two days ago, I found a jade pendant on Yellow Ganoderma Mountain. I accidentally cut my hand and dripped blood onto it."

Lu Qingfeng was stunned when he heard that.

This routine felt awfully familiar!

He did not interrupt Lu Qingshan and continued listening.

"This is the jade pendant." Lu Qingshan took out a bluish-purple jade pendant from his robe. Complex patterns were carved upon it. "After I dripped blood on it, this jade pendant seemed to understand my words. It can even control a corpse beneath Yellow Ganoderma Mountain. I can sense that corpse is very strong. I don't know whether it's the zombie Father once told us about."

"But when I used the jade pendant to make that corpse move once, all the strength in my body was drained away. I guessed that my strength is too low right now, so I can't control that corpse."

Lu Qingshan spoke softly, then tucked the jade pendant into Lu Qingfeng's clothes. "Big Brother, keep this jade pendant. If I don't make it back from the other side of the river this time, perhaps you can use it to avenge me!"

Feeling the cold, sinister aura emanating from the jade pendant against his chest, Lu Qingfeng looked at Lu Qingshan.

Though his younger brother tried his best to hide it, the panic and fear in his eyes could not be concealed.

At the end of the day, Lu Qingshan was only a fourteen-year-old boy.

"Big Brother."

"If... if I don't make it back, you have to tell Qingyu that her Second Brother was a real man. I didn't cry, and I wasn't afraid."

Lu Qingshan's eyes shone brightly. He pressed his lips together, lowered his head again, and said in a voice almost too faint to hear, "Big Brother, I miss Qingyu a little."

"It's all right."

"In three days, you'll see Qingyu."

Lu Qingfeng rubbed Lu Qingshan's hair and smiled.

"Huh?"

Lu Qingshan looked up, unable to understand what his brother meant.

"Qingshan, we're not going to the other side of the river. Tell me now: what time are you leaving in three days, where will you cross the river, and will anyone be there to see you off?" Lu Qingfeng asked in a low voice.

How could he possibly let Lu Qingshan go when surviving depended on luck alone!

Though his current reserves were insufficient and his strength was not yet great, so long as he planned carefully, overthrowing the Returning Truth Sect might be impossible, but taking Lu Qingshan and Lu Qingyu away should not be difficult!

"Big Brother, Wu Yuan has cultivated the Returning Truth Technique to the Fourth Layer. He can fight dozens of Servant Disciples alone. Aside from me, there are five other Servant Disciples this time. I can't escape!" Lu Qingshan finally guessed what his brother meant. Panic filled his face as he hurriedly said.

"Don't worry. When has Big Brother ever done something he wasn't sure of?"

Lu Qingfeng's expression was stern. "I can kill Wu Yuan. Once Wu Yuan is dead, the other five Servant Disciples certainly won't dare resist. Then we'll seize the boat and head straight downstream along the Chengyang River. Once we leave Jiuzhai County, the Returning Truth Sect can forget about finding us!"

"But Wu Yuan—"

Seeing that his brother truly intended to take him and flee, and even claimed he could kill Wu Yuan, Lu Qingshan became even more anxious.

Wu Yuan was an Inner Disciple of the Returning Truth Sect and had quite a reputation throughout the sect. How could Big Brother possibly kill him?

"There's no time. Tell me quickly."

Seeing that his brother did not believe him, Lu Qingfeng grabbed Lu Qingshan's arm!

"Hiss!"

Lu Qingshan's eyes widened as he sucked in a breath from the pain, feeling as though his arm were about to break!

"Qingshan, you encountered a fortuitous opportunity on Yellow Ganoderma Mountain. I encountered one in Blackwood Village as well. Can you tell me Wu Yuan's arrangements for three days from now?" Afraid his brother still would not believe him, Lu Qingfeng squeezed hard, then activated his Inner Breath.

The Heart Burning Palm struck the tree against which the two had been leaning, leaving a palm print three inches deep.

Only then did Lu Qingshan finally believe him.

On the road back to Blackwood Village, Lu Qingfeng kept considering all the possible problems that might arise during this operation.

Lu Qingshan's strength was too low. He had not even entered the path of cultivation.

His mastery of the Returning Truth Technique was zero, and his only Combat Power was a set of Wild Bull Fist.

How much use could such a straightforward fist technique have without Inner Breath to drive it?

Thus, upon hearing that Lu Qingshan would be accompanying an Inner Disciple of the Returning Truth Sect to the other side of the Chengyang River, and that survival depended solely on luck, Lu Qingfeng had resolved to take Lu Qingshan away from the Returning Truth Sect.

In that case, they naturally could not remain in Blackwood Village either!

"The Fourth Layer of the Returning Truth Technique is equivalent to the Fetal Respiration Realm Fourth Layer. With my current strength, catching him off guard with Fireball Art will make killing him easy. Once Wu Yuan is dead, we seize their river-crossing boat and drift downstream. If we slip into any mountain forest, finding us will be like looking for a needle in the sea."

"There are several points to watch."

"First, when Qingshan and the others cross the river in three days, no other Inner Disciples or stronger experts of the Returning Truth Sect can be present. I can handle one Wu Yuan, but any more than that won't do!"

"Second, my Inner Breath is only enough to activate Fireball Art three times. I absolutely cannot miss!"

"Third, I can't row a boat. I have to learn in 'Primordial Wilderness' over these next three days!"

"Fourth, when we abandon the boat and enter the mountain forest, we must watch out for wild beasts and prepare medicine to repel insects and neutralize poison!"

"Fifth..."

Lu Qingfeng considered each point in turn, listing every situation they might encounter before and after the operation, then thinking of solutions in advance for each one.

So that they would not panic at the critical moment.

This operation was rather rushed. The incident had come suddenly, and Lu Qingfeng had not anticipated it.

This is good too. It saves me from worrying day and night!

Lu Qingfeng thought to himself.

During the first three-plus months after Lu Qingshan entered the Returning Truth Sect, the game "Primordial Wilderness" had not yet appeared. The three siblings had been powerless, unable to resist at all.

Then, because he had failed to notice the Hundredfold Time Difference and caused his game character's death, two months had been wasted for nothing.

During those two months, Lu Qingfeng had begun cultivating. But first, his progress was slow, and he had remained hovering at the Fetal Respiration Realm First Layer; second, he had no means of fighting enemies.

Only in the past ten days, after reincarnating in the game, had Lu Qingfeng finally gained some measure of strength.

Whether refining pills or learning spells, everything had been in pursuit of rescuing Lu Qingshan.

Lu Qingfeng had originally intended to make use of the Hundredfold Time Difference and wait until he was more fully prepared before having Lu Qingshan flee Yellow Ganoderma Mountain and Blackwood Village with him and Qingyu.

But now Lu Qingshan was about to risk his life on the other side of the Chengyang River. There was no room for delay!

Though all manner of preparations remained incomplete, far from what Lu Qingfeng had hoped for, he absolutely could not stand by and watch Qingshan go to his death.

"This is also an opportunity."

"Under normal circumstances, apart from the time Qingshan can stay at the foot of the mountain for two incense sticks every seven days, he has to remain on Yellow Ganoderma Mountain at all other times. If he leaves for too long, they will immediately hunt him down. Given the Returning Truth Sect's speed of response, he might be intercepted and beaten to death before even reaching the riverbank."

"This time, with the Inner Disciple Wu Yuan leading them, Qingshan can arrive at the bank openly and without obstruction. So long as Wu Yuan can be killed, the chances of escape are extremely high."

"Once we are far from Blackwood Village and the Returning Truth Sect, I will no longer need to keep up appearances every day, and I can have much more time to cultivate."

Blessings lean upon misfortune; misfortune lies hidden beneath blessings!

Between fortune and calamity, who could predict which would come?

This apparent crisis might well be a splendid opportunity to break free from the cage. Escape Blackwood Village and the Returning Truth Sect, and from then on, the sky would be high and the sea vast!

With the various secret arts and inheritances of "Primordial Wilderness," even if his Root Bone was somewhat poor, it would not stop him from making a name for himself in this world.

Perhaps he could even carve out an immortal path reaching straight to the heavens!

A new week—seeking Recommendation Tickets.