Replacing Gold Yuan, Snowfall Through the Ages

"What? Above the Foundation Establishment Realm Ninth Layer?" Lin Shanghai jolted. "Are you certain?"

"Absolutely. He took those two trial participants and flew away!"

Huang Yanyu nodded firmly.

"Unbelievable. To think someone stronger than me would appear near Clearwind Town and our sect!"

Lin Shanghai sighed.

"Where's Tingjian?"

"Senior Brother went down the mountain to investigate."

"Very well. We'll wait for him to return and see what's going on."

"Yes, Sect Master!"

A few breaths later.

Heavenly Mist Sect.

Outside the Sect.

"Master, is this the Sect?"

Dongfang Muxue gazed at the towering Heavenly Mist Sect, wonder rising in her eyes.

Lü Liu was even more dumbstruck, standing rooted to the spot.

She had never imagined that such a magnificent Sect existed in Eastern Search!

Its grandeur surpassed even that of the Dongfang Family!

"Come. Let's go in."

Li Moqing did not answer. He walked toward the Sect.

"Yes, Master!"

Dongfang Muxue quickly composed herself and followed.

"Yes... Sect... Sect Master!"

But Lü Liu remained lost in astonishment.

Heavenly Mist Sect.

Inside the Sect.

Boom!

Dongfang Muxue had barely entered the Sect when she felt as though thunder had struck her head. She swayed and nearly fell.

"My lady, what's wrong?"

Quick-eyed, Lü Liu caught her and asked in bewilderment.

She was only a mortal and naturally could not sense the extraordinarily dense Source Qi within the Heavenly Mist Sect.

"Thank you, Lü Liu."

Dongfang Muxue steadied herself and thanked her with a soft smile.

"I'm fine."

She answered with forced calm, though her eyes were already full of wonder.

The Sect's Source Qi concentration must be eight or nine hundred times higher than anywhere else in Search Province!

How is that possible? Even the patriarch's bedroom, where Source Qi is densest in the Dongfang Family, is only a hundred times denser than the rest of Search Province!

Astonished, she also rejoiced inwardly. Cultivating amid Source Qi like this, I'll advance a thousand miles in a day!

"Master, you're back?"

Zhang Xingfeng, who had been cultivating on the Dao-Enlightenment Stone, saw Li Moqing and the two women and hurried over to greet them.

The woman in white Master brought back from near the Cloud Offering Sect is at the third level of the Qi Refinement Realm?

Zhang Xingfeng studied Dongfang Muxue, his pupils trembling slightly.

"Xingfeng, this is Dongfang Muxue, the new personal disciple I've taken in."

"This is her maid, Lü Liu. She is also an attendant disciple of our sect."

Li Moqing introduced them to Zhang Xingfeng with a faint smile.

"Muxue, Lü Liu, this is your eldest senior brother, Zhang Xingfeng."

Li Moqing introduced Zhang Xingfeng to the two of them in turn.

"Eldest Senior Brother."

Dongfang Muxue greeted him politely.

"Senior Brother Xingfeng."

Lü Liu did the same.

"Junior Sister Muxue, Junior Sister Lü Liu."

Zhang Xingfeng returned their greetings courteously. Junior Sister Muxue is at the third level of the Qi Refinement Realm. As the eldest senior brother, I can't fall behind. I need to cultivate harder!

The Sect Reception Hall.

"Muxue, since you've taken me as your master, custom requires you to perform the disciple initiation rites and present thirty Gold Yuan."

Seated in the place of honor, Li Moqing spoke solemnly.

Having accepted Zhang Xingfeng's initiation gift, he naturally had to treat them equally.

"Yes, Master!"

Dongfang Muxue knelt at once and said apologetically, "Master, I left in a hurry and didn't bring enough Gold Yuan. May I offer three Low-Grade Source Stones instead?"

Li Moqing raised an eyebrow, somewhat surprised, but inwardly delighted.

To mortals who could not absorb them, Source Stones were worthless rocks.

But to cultivators, three Low-Grade Source Stones were worth far more than thirty Gold Yuan.

Once cultivators reached the third level of the Qi Refinement Realm, they needed to absorb Source Stones to break through whenever they cultivated a minor level to its perfected state—a state, not a separate cultivation level.

Source Stones were indispensable when cultivators broke through.

They came in low, medium, high, and supreme grades.

Ordinarily, ten Low-Grade Source Stones equaled one Middle-Grade Source Stone, and so on.

The system had once warned Li Moqing that fabricating claims about Source Stones would not make them real.

Though Li Moqing did not quite understand why, he could only accept it.

Now, hearing that he could obtain three low-grade Source Stones, he was secretly thrilled. He did not have a single one.

"Very well. Three Low-Grade Source Stones it is."

Though pleased, Li Moqing spoke without the slightest ripple crossing his face.

"Yes, Master!"

Dongfang Muxue took three Low-Grade Source Stones from her Storage Bag and presented them.

"Master, please accept three bows from your disciple, Dongfang Muxue!"

With that, she respectfully knocked her forehead against the floor three times.

"Good. Rise."

Li Moqing accepted the Source Stones and made his arrangements. "Muxue, you'll cultivate here in the Sect from now on. Your residence is the second building in the first row to the West."

"Yes, Master!"

Dongfang Muxue rose as instructed.

Li Moqing turned to Lü Liu. "Lü Liu, you'll be an attendant disciple of the Sect. For now, you'll look after our daily needs. Your residence is the first building in the first row to the south."

"Yes, Sect Master!"

Lü Liu answered obediently. She had been a maid already, so she was long accustomed to such work.

"Muxue, what is your Source Aspect?"

Once the arrangements were settled, Li Moqing asked Dongfang Muxue.

"Ice."

Dongfang Muxue gave a simple one-word answer, then her Source Aspect unfolded.

The hall's temperature plunged. Countless ice blossoms spread from beneath her feet, as though poised to freeze ten thousand miles.

"Brrr!"

Lü Liu, a mere mortal, instantly began chattering her teeth, her body trembling uncontrollably.

Seeing this, Dongfang Muxue hurriedly withdrew her Source Aspect.

"Ice, is it?" Li Moqing pondered for a moment. "In that case, I'll give you an upper-grade Heaven Tier cultivation technique: Snowfall Through the Ages."

"Snowfall Through the Ages? Upper... upper-grade Heaven Tier?"

Dongfang Muxue could scarcely believe it. Her eyes brimmed with astonishment.

Very few cultivators in the world could create Cultivation Arts, so they were usually obtained through inheritance.

An upper-grade Heaven Tier cultivation technique could amplify the might or pressure of a cultivator's techniques up to two hundredfold, or increase their cultivation speed a hundredfold. Such techniques were exceedingly rare!

Lü Liu shuddered too, not from the cold, but because Li Moqing's words far exceeded anything she had imagined.

Earth Tier techniques were hard to find even in Heaven-Opening Capital of the Southern Region, which was said to possess the power to open the heavens. A Heaven Tier technique—an upper-grade one, no less—was beyond imagining!

"Junior Sister, why so surprised? Our sect's cultivation scripture is upper-grade Heaven Tier too."

Zhang Xingfeng spoke with a calm smile.

He looked at Dongfang Muxue with envy in his eyes, more determined than ever to reach the third level of the Qi Refinement Realm as soon as possible.

"The cultivation scripture is upper-grade Heaven Tier too?!"

Dongfang Muxue was even more astonished. Beside her, Lü Liu nearly toppled over.

"Yes. It's this Divine Breath Pure Heart Scripture."

Li Moqing took out the copy of the Divine Breath Pure Heart Scripture he had prepared earlier and handed it to Dongfang Muxue.

"Divine Breath Pure Heart Scripture?"

Dongfang Muxue accepted the Divine Breath Pure Heart Scripture, murmured its name, and eagerly began leafing through it.