"Cough, cough, Brother Dong, you flatter me. My being rated outstanding this time was largely thanks to the resources you provided before."
This was not mere politeness, but Jiang Xuan's heartfelt truth.
Although the Three Purification Incantations and his Unity of Man and Sword with the Azure Glaze Sword had sent his spiritual energy refinement efficiency soaring, his shortage of resources had always been his greatest weakness. Had Dong Hao not repeatedly supplied him with spirit meals and pills to make up for the deficit in his cultivation, his progress would have been cut by at least half, perhaps even seventy percent.
He still vividly remembered how, just two or three days ago, he had burned through his vital blood until he could barely remain standing. It was precisely because of this weighty favor that he could not refuse Dong Hao's invitation.
Clearly, Dong Hao knew that as well. Yet he was smooth and worldly, and since he wanted something from Jiang Xuan, he naturally would not keep bringing up that favor.
"No, no, Brother Jiang, I wasn't exaggerating in the slightest. Even with resources vast enough to drown the heavens, without talent and Root Bone to match, it would still be like drawing water with a bamboo basket. Look at those children of Aristocratic Clans ahead. There are quite a few of them, and they have never lacked resources, yet the overwhelming majority are far behind you now, Brother Jiang."
"Besides, there's something else I need to properly thank you for, Brother Jiang." Having said that, he finally turned his gaze toward Zeng Jun nearby.
Like Su Linyin, Zeng Jun had long since lost his usual relaxed composure. All that remained was a face as green as iron. Especially when he met Dong Hao's teasing gaze, his knuckles clenched white, his lips drained of all color, and he looked both miserable and wretched.
But however modest and warm Dong Hao was toward Jiang Xuan, he was equally merciless toward his opponents. He showed not the slightest pity now. Instead, he grinned at Zeng Jun and said, "Brother Zeng, tell me now—which of us had the sharper eye?"
Crack!
That lightly spoken question made Zeng Jun's back teeth grind together, nearly crushing them to dust.
Yet Dong Hao clearly had no intention of letting him off so easily.
"Oh, right, there's one more thing. Brother Zeng, Brother Guo, don't forget that you two still owe me three hundred and eighty Spirit Stones. There shouldn't be any problem with payment arriving within three days, right?"
Crash—
Those words demanding payment made Guo Shaoshang shoot to his feet.
He had risen too quickly and too suddenly, knocking into several things and leaving a mess scattered around him.
But he had no time to care about that. His face was deathly pale, his body trembling nonstop as he said in panic, "Th-that was just a joke, the academy..."
From his words and demeanor, it was obvious that those Spirit Stones from the wager were an enormous sum to him.
Beside him, Zeng Jun's expression was dark as water.
Yet although he nearly bit his teeth apart, he ultimately did not try to welch on the debt as Guo Shaoshang had.
"No problem. I'll give them to you in three days."
More than three hundred Spirit Stones were an enormous fortune to Jiang Xuan. Even for Dong Hao, they were not something he could casually produce. But to the Zeng Household and the Dong Household, they were nothing much.
And although the Divine Firmament Sect upheld the belief that the Great Dao must be fought for, it could not be denied that it was an upright and prestigious sect.
Therefore, the cultivation households within the Divine Firmament Sect had to care not only about strength, but also face and credibility.
Within such a great sect, a good reputation had always been invisible capital.
It was precisely because he was certain that the other side would never sacrifice the reputation of their entire household over a few Spirit Stones that Dong Hao had never worried Zeng Jun would default, even though there had not been a single written word when they made their wager.
A mere three hundred Spirit Stones were not enough to make them tarnish their household's name.
Under such circumstances, the reason for Zeng Jun's gloomy expression was that the household was the household, and he was he—having to compensate several hundred Spirit Stones due to his own mistake, and having "lost" to Dong Hao, someone his own age, made him a complete failure in the eyes of the household elders.
Once branded a loser, his voice within the clan would plummet, and his future share of resources would inevitably shrink drastically. The more he thought of it, the uglier his expression became.
When Guo Shaoshang saw that even Zeng Jun, whom he followed, had agreed, he did not dare say anything else despite his overwhelming unwillingness.
All he could do now was pray that Zeng Jun would cover the Spirit Stones he needed to pay.
Dong Hao had never cared about an opponent's downfall, and Jiang Xuan cared even less.
Before long, he had no mind to think about it anyway—Dong Hao truly knew how to conduct himself.
The moment the matter of the wager was settled, he immediately leaned close to Jiang Xuan and lowered his voice. "Brother Jiang, we won these Spirit Stones because of you. They should all belong to you."
Offending Zeng Jun for nothing would have been troublesome for Jiang Xuan. But if it could be exchanged for more than three hundred Spirit Stones, that was another matter entirely.
Still, Jiang Xuan had principles of his own and would never swallow all the benefits alone.
"No, Brother Dong. Without your advance payment, this wager could never have been made. And if it had been only me, I might not have been able to collect the stake either."
He understood it only too well. Both the Dong Household and the Zeng Household were cultivation households, so the other side did not dare default. But if a poor common-born disciple like him had wagered against them, the situation would have been as different as heaven and earth. They would not even need underhanded tricks. All they had to do was report him to the Law Enforcement Hall for neglecting his proper studies at the Daoist Academy, gathering people to gamble, and having poor conduct. That charge alone would not only void the wager, but also bring him severe punishment.
Therefore, he did not take it all. He only intended to take half—after all, he had contributed.
But what Dong Hao valued had never been the small profit from these Spirit Stones, but a place as an Inner Disciple. He still needed Jiang Xuan's full support in this matter, so he insisted on giving all the Spirit Stones to Jiang Xuan, intending to make him accept this favor.
"I've already earned enough. Being able to use this matter to suppress Zeng Jun is enough to greatly increase my voice within the clan. That is a benefit not even a thousand Spirit Stones could buy."
After some mutual pushing and yielding, they finally settled on an eighty-twenty split. Dong Hao would take two parts, and Jiang Xuan eight.
Yet after dividing the benefits, Jiang Xuan did not intend to take the Spirit Stones right away.
"Brother Dong, there's no need to give me these Spirit Stones for now." Without waiting for Dong Hao to speak, he continued, "I recall that your household runs the Myriad Treasures Pavilion. There should be Daoist Scriptures and Daoist Canons there, right? I'd like to use these Spirit Stones to purchase a batch."
Seeing that Jiang Xuan was not returning the money but wanted to buy things instead, Dong Hao immediately thumped his chest. "What problem is that? Once tomorrow's gathering ends, I'll take you to my household's Myriad Treasures Pavilion. Pick whatever you like."
Jiang Xuan hurriedly said, "The day after the day after tomorrow would be better. Once the Spirit Stones arrive..."
"Brother Jiang, now you're treating me like an outsider." Dong Hao deliberately pulled a stern face, then broke into a smile. "We're teammates in the same boat. Take whatever catches your eye. If you don't have enough Spirit Stones, I'll cover it for you first."
To secure an Inner Disciple spot beyond doubt, Dong Hao was astonishingly generous now. Of course, he dared say this because he knew Jiang Xuan had principles and hated owing favors—he still remembered perfectly how Jiang Xuan had insisted on treating the One Qi Sword Art he wanted to give him as a loan.
Precisely for that reason, he was not afraid Jiang Xuan would open his mouth like a lion and grab things recklessly. Instead, he feared that Jiang Xuan would only take what was strictly his due and deal with him in cold, cash-for-goods transactions. That would not benefit his later plans.
"When Su Linyin and I made our agreement, neither of us expected Jiang Xuan's talent to be so terrifying."
"Su Linyin must be regretting it until her intestines have turned green by now, and she certainly won't be willing to give up... I have to tie Jiang Xuan firmly to my side."
Su Linyin regretted having "missed out" on Jiang Xuan, while Dong Hao's heart was filled with vigilance. He absolutely did not want to watch the Inner Disciple position that was already within his grasp fly away just like that.
After giving the matter some thought, he truly came up with a way.
"Brother Jiang, although I don't know what you intend to do by purchasing Daoist Scriptures and Daoist Canons, this foolish elder brother grew up in the Myriad Treasures Pavilion and has seen a thing or two. Would Brother Jiang be willing to hear a suggestion from me?"
"Of course. Brother Dong, please speak freely."
Dong Hao's gaze fell upon the bamboo sword Jiang Xuan carried with him wherever he went. He said slowly, "It's clear that Brother Jiang is a lover of the sword. But to be frank, the grade of this sword of yours is truly too low. I suggest that you replace it... no, reforge it."
He read Jiang Xuan's expression and saw a trace of reluctance in his eyes toward the bamboo sword. He immediately changed "replace" to "reforge."
And that suggestion truly made Jiang Xuan's eyes light up.
It was not because of combat strength, nor because he wanted to show off, that he wished for a better sword.
Dong Hao's reminder brought something crucial to Jiang Xuan's mind—he could achieve Unity of Man and Sword with the Azure Glaze Sword, and even use the sword to draw upon the spiritual energy between heaven and earth.
But the Azure Glaze Sword was merely a plaything Jiang Xuan's father had forged for him. It was not a true Dharma artifact.
At present, he could only use the sword to absorb wood-element spiritual energy, and the Azure Glaze Sword's power to draw in the spiritual energy of heaven and earth could only be called passable. But if he could reforge the Azure Glaze Sword and raise its grade...
"Then, with the Azure Glaze Sword as my anchor, wouldn't my efficiency in absorbing spiritual energy directly double—or even multiply several times over?"
Just imagining the benefits made Jiang Xuan's mind surge with excitement.
But he quickly came back to himself and shook his head with a bitter smile.
How could reforging a flying sword be easy? Leaving aside the amount of rare spiritual materials required, merely finding a reliable artifact refiner to do the work would cost an astronomical number of Spirit Stones. The few hundred Spirit Stones he had just acquired were no more than a drop in the bucket.
Dong Hao naturally knew the difficulties of reforging the Azure Glaze Sword. But since he had raised the matter, he naturally had a solution.
"Brother Jiang, my uncle happens to be a high-grade artifact refiner. With him taking action, your bamboo sword can certainly be reforged into a mid-grade Dharma artifact."
"Don't rush to refuse. The second round of assessment will test actual combat ability. If you want a good ranking, you need a weapon that fits your hand."
Once those words were spoken, Jiang Xuan could no longer refuse. And after becoming a Clear-Heart Sword Disciple, he had been extremely eager for a good longsword. With both factors combined, Jiang Xuan clasped his hands and bowed to Dong Hao. "Then I'll have to trouble you, Brother Dong."
"Haha, it's a trivial matter!"
Once Jiang Xuan agreed, Dong Hao knew that his Inner Disciple position was more than halfway secure.
Leaving aside Jiang Xuan's character, this alone left him little room to go back on his word. Accepting the benefits yet refusing to contribute would make Jiang Xuan faithless and dishonorable, the sort of person others would point at and curse behind his back.
And entering the inner sect meant taking a master. But even in the Divine Firmament Sect, which revered the belief that the Great Dao must be fought for, no master would be willing to accept an ungrateful white-eyed wolf as a disciple.
Jiang Xuan understood this as well, but since he had agreed, he naturally had his own considerations.
Dong Hao only wants me to help him enter the inner sect. He isn't asking to fight for first place, much less to cut off my path... As long as I'm strong enough, it won't be difficult for both of us to enter the inner sect together.
Being rated outstanding finally set Jiang Xuan's constantly suspended heart at ease, and he relaxed enough to chat with Dong Hao for quite some time.
But he did not slack off because of it. When evening class arrived, he still entered meditation alongside Dong Hao and the others.
Although he had cultivated once in advance that afternoon, now that the Origin Sea Spirit Pivot had formed, the qi and blood throughout his body finally had true roots. As a result, he refined even more spiritual energy during this evening cultivation session than usual.
This time, however, Jiang Xuan did not open any new Apertures.
All the spiritual energy he refined was completely absorbed by the thirty-six Apertures he had already opened, leaving not a trace behind.
The fact that Spirit Pivot Aperture Opening placed the Spirit Pivot first in the first realm of cultivation already made its importance beyond doubt.
Once the Spirit Pivot formed, not only did the transcendent power within Jiang Xuan gain a hub of command, but all the Apertures opened throughout his body gained a central pivot as well, allowing them to resonate in the same frequency and undergo a complete transformation.
"Three Spirit Pivots mean three complete transformations. No wonder the cultivation world has always said that realm is the foundation of cultivation."
Although he had not nourished any new Apertures, the thorough nourishment and tempering of his existing thirty-six Apertures still filled Jiang Xuan with a solid sense of abundance.
When evening class ended, it was time for dismissal. Jiang Xuan usually left at once, but today, together with Dong Hao and all the other students rated outstanding, he stayed behind amid the gazes of envy and jealousy from his fellow disciples.
They were not kept waiting long. Once all unrelated students had left, Instructor Song Zhou's figure suddenly drifted before them like a startled swan.
The moment they met, he gave these high-spirited youths a sharp warning.