Cultivation on Credit, Son of Light

Qing Yanjing had no choice at all.

Though she and Futu Xuan were at odds, it was merely a clash of ideals.

She too hoped for the Pagoda Ancient Clan to grow stronger. Moreover, she could not escape blame for the clan's decline.

Although she had never regretted pursuing love and still found the others in the clan unbearably conservative,

the result was that she had been suppressed for her "mistake," while the Qing Lineage was oppressed by the other two main branches,

ultimately throwing the Pagoda Ancient Clan's internal balance into disarray.

More importantly, Futu Yun held all her weaknesses in his hands.

Though Futu Yun had not ruthlessly killed her son, he had already investigated Mu Chen's background thoroughly.

If he only knew Mu Chen's name, that would have been one thing.

After all, Futu Yun had also been to the Spirit Road. He had even dug out her son's Divine Vein, so they were surely well acquainted.

It was perfectly normal for them to know each other's names after speaking on the Spirit Road.

But Futu Yun could accurately name "Mu Territory, Northern Spiritual Realm, Hundred Spirit Continent,"

and even knew her husband Mu Feng's name perfectly well.

Clearly, he had investigated everything long ago.

Although Mu Chen also carried the bloodline of the Pagoda Ancient Clan,

his father's status was lowly, and his bloodline was mixed and impure. The ancient clan would never acknowledge him; they would only erase such beings!

Thus, Qing Yanjing had no choice at all.

Futu Yun publicly claimed that he "wanted to learn Spirit Formations,"

and Qing Yanjing was released from confinement under the identity of "the young clan leader's teacher,"

though she was still only allowed to move within the Pagoda Ancient Clan's territory.

So this was basically changing from imprisonment to house arrest, wasn't it?

Though she could not leave the ancient clan, Qing Yanjing's return swept away the Qing Lineage's decline,

and it even faintly showed signs of suppressing the Xuan Branch and Mo Branch.

After all, she was a Saint-Grade Spiritual Array Grandmaster, with combat power comparable to a Saint-grade Heavenly Sovereign.

And the Grand Elder, Futu Xuan, had always stayed out of the affairs of the various branches.

Thus, Qing Yanjing's strength was undoubtedly an overwhelming advantage against the other branches.

However, she could not go too far.

Futu Yun had allowed Qing Yanjing to return to the Qing Lineage precisely because the Xuan Branch and Mo Branch had become too powerful.

If the Qing Lineage became the sole dominant faction because of this, it would clearly go against his original intentions.

Therefore, Futu Yun had always kept Qing Yanjing in check.

And with the support of this Saint Grade combatant,

Futu Yun had not only completely secured his position as young clan leader, but was practically half a clan leader already.

"Master has behaved well these past few days. I've decided to restore your cultivation for one day. What do you think?"

As he spoke, an invisible ripple of aura suddenly spread outward.

Qing Yanjing immediately sensed the restriction sealing her cultivation disappear. Killing intent erupted from her in an instant, and she raised her hand to strike Futu Yun.

But the next moment, her cultivation was sealed again. Her right hand froze in midair, her fingertips only three inches from Futu Yun's face.

"Master still isn't obedient. It seems you prefer the feeling of being sealed."

Futu Yun turned and left, his tone carrying a trace of regret.

"Ah, I was quite satisfied seeing Master cooperate so well. I was even thinking of completely unsealing you."

"You..." Qing Yanjing bit down hard on her lower lip. "You treacherous disciple!"

Futu Yun suddenly stopped.

Qing Yanjing's heart skipped a beat. What was this treacherous disciple going to do now?

He turned his head, a teasingly wicked smile curling across his face. "Master is only a title in name,"

"I almost forgot your greatest use. Hurry up and wash yourself clean. I'll need you after I break through."

Watching that figure gradually disappear into the distance, Qing Yanjing felt a bone-deep helplessness for the first time.

Not even when she had been gravely injured, or when the Pagoda Ancient Clan had captured and brought her back, had she ever felt so powerless.

Suddenly, a patch of chaotic light rose up. Merely looking at it left one dazzled and entranced.

This was the Divine Vein Divine Ability Mu Chen obtained after refining the Nine Divine Veins in the original story—Futu Chaos Light.

When the chaotic light swept down, it was as though it dragged people into another world without the concepts of space or time.

Once caught within it, all things would be suppressed,

and ultimately be scoured into nothingness by the chaotic light.

However, Futu Yun had not yet fully refined the Nine Divine Veins, so naturally he could not completely wield this Divine Ability.

Only after fully claiming the Nine Divine Veins had he barely gained a trace of Futu Chaos Light's power,

which he used to condense his spiritual wheel.

But this trace of power alone was still far from enough.

He had also obtained the remains of a Primordial Mandala Flower—when it was alive, this flower had been an Immortal Grade Heavenly Sovereign-level existence.

A jade bottle was filled with spiritual liquid, within which a palm-sized, bewitching flower was submerged, emitting peculiar fluctuations.

He had asked someone to trade for it from Danyang Ancestor on the Tianluo Continent.

This item had also been mentioned in the original story. He had initially only intended to try his luck.

If he could not obtain it, he would have had no choice but to settle for the next best thing and seek out the still-immature Datura Flower in the Greatlaw Domain.

The Primordial Mandala Flower's remains were somewhat damaged, worth at most a little over one billion Supreme Spiritual Liquid.

The Pagoda Ancient Clan was willing to buy it at a premium, so Danyang Ancestor naturally gave them this favor.

And Futu Yun had never lacked money.

Leaving aside the Pagoda Ancient Clan's unconditional and limitless investment of resources in him, his own private treasury was also quite substantial.

With the Light Meridian Refining Method, he had even introduced "Meridian Refining Loans."

After all, although he had handed over the cultivation method for the Light Meridian Refining Method,

the Primordial Dharma Body, the Endless Light Body, remained in his hands.

Those who possessed Earth-grade or even Heaven-grade Spirit Veins could apply for this loan.

The Pagoda Ancient Clan would provide the funding, and borrowers only needed to complete tasks for the Pagoda Ancient Clan to repay it.

Moreover, not everyone could apply for the loan. Only those who formally joined the Pagoda Ancient Clan were eligible.

The Pagoda Ancient Clan had also recruited quite a few powerful experts through this.

Having read the original story, Futu Yun knew clearly

that the Great Thousand World contained many people like Xuantian Ancestor, who had advanced to Heavenly Sovereign without possessing a Divine Vein.

If they relied on the Meridian Refining Method to raise their potential, such people could naturally rise to an even greater level.

As long as they could break through their realm, what did spending some money or doing some work for others matter?

In the original story, Xuantian Ancestor had even worked for Mu Chen, a junior, in order to survive.

So what was shameful about these people serving the Pagoda Ancient Clan now?

Those Heavenly Sovereigns might hesitate, but Earthly Sovereigns had no need to hesitate at all.

At the end of the day, wasn't this simply a so-called "Son of the Continent"?

Given the scale of the Western Heavens Continent,

even after being nourished by the power of heaven and earth for several centuries, the accumulated Earthly Power could at most create three Sons of the Continent.

And only Heavenly Sovereigns could wield the Continental Power deep within the continent.

Thus, the positions of "Son of the Continent" had become an enormous lure used by the Western Heaven War Temple to attract powerful factions and experts.

Only factions or experts who had pledged themselves to the War Temple for over ten years were qualified to compete for a "Son of the Continent" position.

Even experts at Earthly Sovereign Great Perfection would be tempted by this allure.

Every Son of the Continent possessed the potential to become a Heavenly Sovereign, and their chances of success were at least far higher than ordinary people's.

But Futu Yun's Light Meridian Refining Method was not inferior in the slightest. It could practically mass-produce "Sons of the Continent."

Though they were slightly inferior to true Sons of the Continent, their advantage lay in their sheer numbers.

Countless factions and experts under the Western Heaven War Temple had offered ten years of loyalty and done countless things for the Western Heavens Continent,

only to compete for three positions that appeared once every several centuries.

So what was wrong with coming to the Pagoda Ancient Clan and becoming a second-rate "Son of Light"?