The secret of the Body-Strengthening Scripture!

"He had a Spiritual Root all along?!"

The shock those words brought Wang Ba was no less than what he had felt when he first heard that the Body-Strengthening Scripture could let him cultivate a Spiritual Root.

His mouth went dry, and his head buzzed.

"Could this really be a scam?"

"Brother Wang, what did you say?"

"N-nothing. I meant, how is that possible? Can't this Body-Strengthening Scripture let us cultivate Spiritual Roots?"

Wang Ba could not help questioning him.

Steward Li remained calm in the face of his doubts. "In any case, that is what I know. Please don't spread it around, Brother Wang."

"Oh, right. I actually came to tell you that the elders have all been busy lately. I've reported your situation several times, but there's been no word. Still, you needn't be too anxious. There's been too much going on lately, and the elders can't be everywhere at once. Once they've finished, I imagine they'll have some instructions."

"There's no rush, no rush."

Disappointment immediately became plainly visible on Wang Ba's face.

Seeing this, Steward Li said no more and took his leave, heading down from the Mountain Manor.

"No need to see me any farther, Brother Wang."

Yet Wang Ba insisted on escorting him all the way to the foot of the Mountain Manor, watching until his figure gradually disappeared from sight.

Only then did the disappointment on his face quietly give way to calm.

There's definitely something wrong with this Steward Li!

Wang Ba's gaze was colder and graver than ever.

With his five senses as keen as they were, Wang Ba would have known long beforehand if someone had arrived at the foot of the Mountain Manor.

Yet this Steward Li had made it all the way to his door, and had he not knocked of his own accord, Wang Ba would never have known.

Although the Body-Strengthening Scripture could strengthen the body, it could not conceal footsteps or the rustling of clothing as one moved.

On the contrary, because excessive strength was difficult to control, footsteps often became heavier.

Steward Li was at the ninth layer, but as far as Wang Ba knew, Manure Boss Niu Yong was at the seventh layer of the Body-Strengthening Scripture, yet even his footsteps thundered in Wang Ba's ears.

If that was not enough proof, Wang Ba could be certain after deliberately escorting him down from the Mountain Manor.

Because even without needing to conceal the Spirit Chickens, the Yin Spirit Power in his Yin Spirit Mansion had only been depleted a little more slowly!

This meant that Steward Li himself had accounted for the bulk of the Yin Spirit Power being consumed!

The higher the cultivation realm and strength of the person being deceived, the greater the consumption of Yin Spirit Power, as with that Sect disciple that night.

And Steward Li had consumed it even faster than that Sect disciple!

How could a mere mortal steward of the Outer Sect be stronger than a Sect disciple, even if he was at the ninth layer?

Unless Steward Li was not what he claimed to be.

Then why had he deliberately concealed himself?

What was his purpose?

And why had he made a special trip here to deliberately tell Wang Ba the secrets of the Body-Strengthening Scripture?

Was it for the method of breeding Spirit Chickens? Or did he have some other scheme?

For the moment, Wang Ba could not work out Steward Li's intentions.

But he had clearly raised his guard.

As for Meng Randao's words, which Steward Li had revealed-

They had indeed left Wang Ba somewhat unsettled.

"It wasn't the Body-Strengthening Scripture that let him cultivate a Spiritual Root. He had a Spiritual Root all along." What exactly did that mean? Why had he given me an answer like that when I asked about the ninth layer?

Why say that if I couldn't cultivate a Spiritual Root within three years, there would be almost no chance of doing so for the rest of my life?

Steward Li once said I would understand when I reached the ninth layer. What did that mean, too?

There was too much jumbled information, and it had shaken Wang Ba too deeply.

Although he had some guesses, he still felt that he lacked some crucial information.

He could not reach a final judgment.

He could only push himself hard, constantly eating Spirit Chickens to condense Yin Spirit Power.

The next day.

Carrying Chicken Feed, Old Hou walked the Mountain Manor's bumpy paths as though they were level ground, easily delivering several buckets to Wang Ba.

To Wang Ba's surprise, however, Old Hou did not stop to chat. As soon as he finished delivering the Chicken Feed, he climbed onto his Donkey Cart and prepared to leave.

Wang Ba had something to ask him. How could he let him get away?

"Hey, Old Hou, what's the rush?"

Wang Ba grabbed Old Hou, but nearly failed to hold him back.

"Oh, how could I not be in a rush? Some of us who deliver Chicken Feed have been pressed into service too. Now I have to deliver Chicken Feed to over twenty manors all by myself!"

Old Hou looked very anxious.

Smiling, Wang Ba slipped two eggs into Old Hou's hands.

But Old Hou did not seem particularly interested. Wang Ba gritted his teeth and slipped him a Spirit Chicken egg as well.

"Is this... a Spirit Chicken egg?"

Old Hou's eyes widened, and he identified the egg at once.

"Whoa! You really managed to breed one?!"

"Just luck, just luck!"

Wang Ba smiled, then changed the subject.

"Old Hou, how bad has this Chicken Plague gotten?"

At the mention of this, Old Hou's blabbermouth spirit began blazing again. With an exaggerated expression, he said:

"Let me tell you, it's a miserable sight!"

"They're throwing Precious Chickens into furnaces by the hundreds! All reduced to ash!"

"It breaks my heart! Wouldn't it be better to let us Servant Disciples eat them? Chicken Plague doesn't spread to humans!"

Wang Ba felt heartache at hearing this too. How wonderful it would be if they were all given to him!

Still, he asked a question that concerned him more. "Have any Spirit Chickens caught the Chicken Plague?"

"I haven't heard of any."

Old Hou shook his head. "I heard these Spirit Chickens are just like the Spirit Beasts the immortals keep. They don't fall ill easily. The Chicken Plague may be fierce, but it can't hurt Spirit Chickens!"

At this, Wang Ba breathed somewhat easier, though he was still a little worried.

He was also afraid that his Precious Chickens might fall ill, but if Spirit Chickens could escape this Chicken Plague, then there would be no problem.

After a little more idle conversation, seeing that Old Hou was eager to leave, Wang Ba finally asked the question that concerned him most.

"Old Hou, have the people in your Immortal Ascension Society ever said why, if you can't master the Body-Strengthening Scripture in three years, you'll have no hope for the rest of your life?"

Hearing Wang Ba's words, Old Hou stood up on the Donkey Cart in alarm.

He looked around and, only after making sure no one was there, glared at Wang Ba.

"Don't go talking nonsense!"

"Yes, yes, I absolutely won't!"

As he spoke, Wang Ba ingratiatingly took a two-part Spirit Stone from his sleeve and slipped it into Old Hou's hand.

Old Hou instinctively glanced at it, then came to his senses and hurriedly pressed his hand against his belly.

Looking up at Wang Ba, his eyes were full of complicated feelings and helplessness. "You know that's not what I meant... Ah! Fine!"

"Don't breathe a word of this!"

"Not a word!"

Wang Ba swore to the heavens.

Old Hou hesitated again and again. Finally, for the sake of that two-part Spirit Stone, he slowly spoke, saying something that made everything suddenly clear to Wang Ba.

"That's because the Body-Strengthening Scripture was meant for people with Spiritual Roots to cultivate in the first place!"

"It's just that these Spiritual Roots are Hidden Spiritual Roots. Even Qi Refining disciples, or even Foundation Establishment disciples, can't detect them. To prevent anyone from being overlooked, someone created this Cultivation Method to ensure that not a single person with Spiritual Root aptitude would be missed."

"Anyone with a Hidden Spiritual Root is certain to master the Body-Strengthening Scripture within three years. But anyone without a Spiritual Root will never break through the barrier between the ninth and tenth layers in their entire life, unless..."