Failure makes you a rebel; success makes you a kingmaker

Qi Shiyun's gaze grew increasingly appreciative as she looked at Lianshan Xin.

She had never liked indecisive people. What she favored most was an unwavering Dao heart like Lianshan Xin's, charging ever forward.

Of course, she could not rule out the possibility that Lianshan Xin's fearlessness came from ignorance.

Still, Qi Shiyun preferred to believe that even if Lianshan Xin knew of the troubles lurking behind this, he would press forward all the same.

Even if the countless threads of karma could not be severed, with enough strength, one could shatter them through sheer force.

This was the Dao heart and open-minded spirit an Immortal Cultivation practitioner ought to possess.

And she saw them in Lianshan Xin.

"Ngh!"

Lianshan Xin suddenly let out a muffled groan. An unnatural flush spread across his face, and his body began trembling violently.

"Don't panic. The medicine has simply taken effect, and its potency exceeds what your body can bear. A martial artist in the Meridian Opening Realm must undergo a transformation that remakes flesh and bone. It's excruciating. If you can't endure even this much pain, you should give up now and go home to inherit the family business."

Qi Shiyun's voice rang beside Lianshan Xin's ear.

What damned family business? Lianshan Xin thought.

If he stopped pushing himself, the Nine Heavens would immediately take President Qu's medicinal herb business back.

As for Spring Revival Hall, it actually earned quite a bit, but his past martial training had consumed nearly all of it. Scholarship was for the poor, martial arts for the rich-that was no idle saying.

With no money, he had no choice but to tough it out. Lianshan Xin stopped groaning, clenched his teeth, and silently felt the Qi Condensation Pill turn into surges of energy that rampaged through his body, crashing in every direction.

Every part of him felt as though it were being torn apart.

But anything that made you better was bound to be painful.

Lianshan Xin had understood that truth in his previous life.

A little temporary physical pain was nothing.

Once he endured it, boundless seas and open skies awaited.

Lianshan Xin focused his mind and worked hard to circulate the Basic Cultivation Method, guiding the energy within him to gather in one place rather than careen in every direction.

As Lianshan Xin began settling into the process, a flicker of surprise crossed Qi Shiyun's eyes.

No one knew the purity of the astral energy she had cultivated better than she did.

There were things she had not yet had time to explain fully before Lianshan Xin swallowed the Qi Condensation Pill in one gulp.

In truth, this Qi Condensation Pill held another secret.

The astral energy infused into the Qi Condensation Pill Lianshan Xin had swallowed came from the astral energy she had cultivated herself.

The fifth realm of the Martial Dao, the Grandmaster Realm, was also called the Astral Transformation Realm. At this stage, the true qi within the body underwent intense refinement, compression, and transformation, forming unique types of astral energy, such as blazing flame astral energy, frost astral energy, protective astral energy, and sharp metal astral energy.

The energy cultivated by her lineage was called astral energy within the Martial Dao system, but within the Dragon Aiders lineage, it had a special name—dragon energy!

In private, it had another name as well-imperial energy!

Only those blessed with tremendous fortune could cultivate dragon energy.

Even those blessed with tremendous fortune would inevitably have to endure hellish trials to master Dragon Energy.

A snake grew into a python, a python into a boa, a boa into a flood dragon, and a flood dragon into a true dragon. Not a single step in that process could be skipped.

The day one truly became a dragon was the day one's cultivation reached full mastery. Yet a snake needed ten years to become a python, a python a hundred years to become a boa, a boa five hundred years to become a flood dragon, and a flood dragon a thousand years to become a true dragon. A true dragon needed five hundred years to become a horned dragon, and a thousand to become a winged dragon. The time required was simply too long.

In ancient times, when the immortal Dao flourished, people could rely on their long lifespans to master the Dragon-Supporting Immortal Art alone.

But now, the conditions of heaven and earth had changed drastically. Although the Martial Dao was no weaker than the immortal Dao in combat, it fell far short when it came to extending life. Achieving enduring longevity was more than a hundred times harder than through Immortal Cultivation.

It was no longer possible to fully master the Dragon-Supporting Immortal Art through solitary cultivation. One could only borrow the strength of others and cooperate for mutual benefit.

Thus, the Chosen of Heaven had guided her onto the path, and she had guided Lianshan Xin onto it.

Every time her cultivation advanced a level, her master benefited as well. In the future, every time Lianshan Xin's cultivation advanced a level, she would likewise benefit, and the Chosen of Heaven would benefit indirectly.

In a sense, the Chosen of Heaven was both the lineage most determined to court death and the most united. They truly shared a common stake.

But dragon energy was so powerful that Lianshan Xin, still in the Body Tempering Realm, could barely withstand it. When the Chosen of Heaven had first guided her onto the path, she had already reached the Qi Condensation Realm. Even so, she had suffered immense pain.

The pain Lianshan Xin was enduring now was no greater than what she had experienced back then, but his cultivation was far weaker. His ability to withstand it could not compare to hers at the time.

Only by passing this trial can you earn the right to leap through the Dragon Gate. This alone is something I cannot help you with.

Qi Shiyun watched Lianshan Xin quietly, praying for him in her heart.

If Lianshan Xin failed to open all the meridians in his body and the Qi Condensation Pill did not achieve its intended effect, her own cultivation would fall slightly as well.

That, too, was something she had not yet told Lianshan Xin.

They prospered together and suffered together. That was what it meant to be Dragon Aiders. Having accepted another's benefits, one was bound to bear the karma they brought.

Qi Shiyun considered that fair.

Most practitioners of the Dragon Aiders Art were gamblers at heart.

Fortunately, this time, Qi Shiyun's gamble paid off.

An hour later.

Lianshan Xin opened his eyes, his gaze flashing like lightning through the dim room. He felt power coursing through every part of his body.

Then he saw Qi Shiyun looking at him with undisguised distaste.

"Third-Place Qi, what's with that look?"

"You stink."

"Stink?"

Lianshan Xin looked down and was delighted once more.

His entire body was indeed covered in grime, but it was all impurities expelled from within.

Opening his meridians and cleansing his marrow-this was precisely the sign that he had fully mastered the Meridian Opening Realm.

"I haven't let you down." A smile appeared on Lianshan Xin's face.

Then he saw Qi Shiyun spread her delicate hand, and a localized shower began falling over his head inside the room, washing his body clean.

"Is this... an immortal's power?"

Lianshan Xin looked at Qi Shiyun in astonished delight.

Third-Place Qi really was an Immortal Cultivation practitioner!

Having offered a small demonstration, Qi Shiyun was clearly in a good mood as well. "It's not an immortal's power, just a little trick of our lineage. Once you reach the Grandmaster Realm and can project your astral energy outward, you'll be able to master this skill too."

Lianshan Xin instantly began yearning to become a grandmaster.

"Bestowing sweet rain is only a little trick?"

Qi Shiyun corrected him. "Not bestowing sweet rain. Summoning wind and rain."

"Summoning wind and rain?"

"Since you've successfully achieved qi condensation with my guidance, it's time to tell you the inside story of our Chosen of Heaven lineage. In ancient times, our lineage was called the Dragon Aiders."

"Dragon Aiders? What sort of dragon?" An ominous feeling stirred in Lianshan Xin.

Qi Shiyun gave him a kindly smile. "Exactly the one you're thinking of. The dragon of the true dragon emperor, the Son of Heaven."

Lianshan Xin: "..."

"That's why I agreed to give you the Millennium Snow Lotus. The fastest and best way for our lineage to reach full mastery is to use members of the imperial family as cultivation material and raise a true dragon emperor. Supporting the Crown Prince is certain to yield the smallest return."

Lianshan Xin finally understood everything.

He had always known he was not worth that much, but yesterday he had realized that finding successors must be extremely difficult for the Chosen of Heaven lineage too. Otherwise, Qi Shiyun would never have lowered herself to repeatedly hint that she wanted to recruit him.

Now it all made sense.

"Then isn't our lineage a reserve force of rebels?"

Qi Shiyun said solemnly, "Failure makes you a rebel; success makes you a kingmaker!"

Lianshan Xin could not refute that, so he shifted the subject. "The lower the standing of the person we support, and the higher their eventual achievement, the greater our rewards?"

"Correct."

"Then if you supported me and made me emperor, Third-Place Qi, wouldn't you be able to ascend amid radiant clouds?"

Qi Shiyun's expression instantly turned strange. "You're right in principle, but you certainly dare to dream. The imperial court has endured for a thousand years, its rule unshakable. I only want to practice Immortal Cultivation, not go looking for death."

Lianshan Xin raised his swordlike brows slightly, lost in thought.