[Age 18: You refused the marriage and broke with your Lineage!] [Age 21: You went out to temper yourself, obtained the inheritance of a Golden Core Realm expert, and broke through to Foundation Establishment Middle Stage.] [Age 24: You went out to temper yourself, obtained the inheritance of a Nascent Soul Realm expert, and broke through to Foundation Establishment Late Stage.] [Age 25: You went out to temper yourself, obtained the inheritance of a Nascent Soul Realm sword cultivator, and cultivated a sword heart!]
"Such fortune!"
Ling Ziling marveled as she read Wu Yuehua's experiences. No wonder Wu Yuehua had been able to break through to Golden Core before thirty with a mid-grade spirit root. She was someone blessed with tremendous fortune.
Fortuitous opportunities that ordinary people might never encounter even once came her way every time she went out to temper herself.
At the same time, Ling Ziling became even more determined to take Wu Yuehua as her disciple. A disciple with such fortune naturally deserved extra nurturing. That way, she could increase the Dao Sect's fortune.
[Age 28: You broke through to the Golden Core Realm and joined the Law Enforcement Hall. During the sect's purge, you slew two Golden Core spies, catching the sect leader's eye. She took you as her disciple, leaving you immensely excited.] [Age 28: You left the sect to temper yourself, only to be ambushed by five Golden Core experts from the Demon Sect. After killing one, you proved no match for the others and fled with severe injuries. A masked expert swept away the Demon Sect experts with a single sword strike and saved you. You wanted to ask him for guidance in swordsmanship, but unexpectedly, he refused. He gave you a healing pill and left. After returning to the sect, you repeatedly recalled that expert's sword strike, and your swordsmanship improved again!]
"Hehe, she really is blessed with tremendous fortune. Ambushed by five Golden Core cultivators, she still managed to kill one. Then someone rescued her while she was severely wounded, and she even managed to secretly learn some swordsmanship."
Ling Ziling shook her head with a chuckle. If she had possessed such fortune back then, why would she have worried about failing to destroy the Demon Sect?
Then a flash of killing intent crossed Ling Ziling's eyes. She had not expected the Demon Sect to be so sinister as to target the Dao Sect's gifted disciples when they went out.
[Age 32: The sect held its grand competition. With many disciples having successfully reached Foundation Establishment in the Spirit Medicine Realm, this competition was exceptionally exciting. Your master took in two more disciples. You devoted yourself to practicing swordsmanship!] [Age 43: Your junior brother Ye Tian was ambushed by the Demon Sect and returned severely wounded. You left the sect to avenge him, slaying ten Demon Sect prodigies in succession and making a great name for yourself!] [Age 66: You left the sect to temper yourself and were hunted by a Nascent Soul Realm expert from the Demon Sect. You obtained the inheritance of a Spirit Transformation Realm expert, broke through to the Nascent Soul Realm, and turned the tables to kill the Demon Sect Nascent Soul cultivator!] [Age 97: Ye Tian killed the Demon Sect leader's only son, raising the curtain on the war between the righteous and demonic paths. You charged onto the front lines and repeatedly rendered outstanding service!] [Age 102: The war between the righteous and demonic paths escalated. The grand elder died mysteriously in battle, and the Demon Sect grew brazen.]
"The grand elder still died in battle, and the cause wasn't uncovered."
Ling Ziling frowned. When she had simulated her own life, the grand elder had died to Azure Feather Swordsmanship. She had not expected that even after she purged a wave of spies and strengthened the Dao Sect's unity, the grand elder would still die in battle.
[Age 110: An elder of the Immortal Alliance thought highly of you and wanted to take you as a disciple, on the condition that you leave the Azure Feather Dao Sect. You refused!]
"An Immortal Alliance elder!"
Ling Ziling's eyes widened. Even Ao Jin had merely been a subordinate of the Immortal Alliance that day. Wouldn't an Immortal Alliance elder's cultivation be even higher? She had never expected Wu Yuehua to refuse.
"Ah, to think this child values loyalty and affection so deeply. She deserves to be nurtured with every effort."
[Age 128: The Blood Demon Sect leader broke through to Spirit Transformation Late Stage, and the righteous side suffered a crushing defeat. The Demon Sect stormed the Azure Feather Dao Sect. With the Dao Sect's destruction imminent, you had your two junior disciples break out while you risked your life to hold back the powerful enemies. On the brink of death, you broke through to the Spirit Transformation Realm, but the Demon Sect was too powerful. You died in battle!]
"Hm?"
Ling Ziling gave a soft exclamation. If she remembered correctly, the Blood Demon Sect leader had broken through to Spirit Transformation Late Stage when she was 260. Yet in Wu Yuehua's simulation, his breakthrough had been delayed by a year, and the Dao Sect's destruction had also come a year later.
Ling Ziling hurriedly looked at the simulation panel. Sure enough, the Dao Sect's fortune value had changed.
"Dao Sect fortune: 101!"
"One more year of fortune!"
Ling Ziling burst into laughter. The future was not unchangeable. There were still a hundred years until the Dao Sect's destruction. As long as she handled things properly, she could defeat the Demon Sect.
"My other two disciples can both live for another hundred years. I can choose them for the next two simulations, but I need to study carefully how to weaken the Demon Sect. Most importantly, how to stop the Blood Demon Sect leader from breaking through to Spirit Transformation Late Stage."
Ling Ziling pondered for a moment, then set the matter aside for now and rose to head toward the inner disciples' quarters.
In the simulation, Wu Yuehua possessed tremendous fortune. Her life with cheats had left Ling Ziling utterly astonished. Moreover, she valued loyalty and affection, refusing an Immortal Alliance elder for the Dao Sect and ultimately fighting the Demon Sect to the death. She deserved to be nurtured with every effort.
Wood Spirit Peak.
When Ye Xuan found Ji Fenghe, Ji Fenghe was scratching his ears and cheeks in frustration before a pill furnace, the folding fan in his hand trembling nonstop. He did not even notice Ye Xuan's arrival.
Seeing that Ji Fenghe was occupied, Ye Xuan sat down nearby and waited patiently for him.
Soon, Ji Fenghe began refining pills.
Ye Xuan also took stock of his own alchemy. He had focused on cultivation lately, and his alchemy had not improved much.
From Ji Fenghe's descriptions, Ye Xuan knew his alchemy was roughly at the Foundation Establishment Realm level. However, constrained by the strength he displayed publicly, Ye Xuan had yet to refine any Foundation Establishment Realm pills.
Ji Fenghe soon finished refining his pills, but the results seemed less than ideal. He held the pills and sighed repeatedly.
"Senior brother, what's wrong?"
Ye Xuan asked with some curiosity. Even when their master had asked Ji Fenghe to refine high-potency Qi Gathering Pills, he had never seen Ji Fenghe so dejected.
"Oh, junior brother, you've finished cultivating?"
Ji Fenghe's eyes lit up when he saw Ye Xuan, and he approached with the pills in hand.
"It's that fellow Mo Qi. He recently refined Bone-Strengthening Pills with ninety-five percent potency and came flaunting them in front of me."
As Ji Fenghe rambled on, Ye Xuan came to understand what had happened.
In the outer sect, besides Wood Spirit Peak, there was another grandmaster alchemist whose alchemy rivaled their master's, and Mo Qi was that grandmaster alchemist's disciple.
Over the years, Ji Fenghe and Mo Qi had competed for the title of the outer sect's top alchemist of their generation. Each had their share of wins and losses, loving and fighting each other. Whenever either refined high-potency pills, he would always show them off to the other to goad him.
This time, Mo Qi had refined a batch of Bone-Strengthening Pills with ninety-five percent potency, goading Ji Fenghe into trying to refine Bone-Strengthening Pills of even higher potency.
Yet despite two days of arduous refining, Ji Fenghe had failed to produce Bone-Strengthening Pills with ninety-five percent potency.
Today was the third day. According to their agreement, whoever could not refine pills of higher potency than the other's within three days would lose.
"So, senior brother, you want me to refine flawless Bone-Strengthening Pills to win the competition?"
Ye Xuan looked at Ji Fenghe with some curiosity.
"No, no, no. I'm not that sort of person. You would be winning this competition for our Wood Spirit Peak, junior brother. There's no shame in me losing a contest, but it wouldn't be very good for Wood Spirit Peak's reputation."
Ji Fenghe shook his head repeatedly. He would never admit that he wanted to use Ye Xuan to deal Mo Qi a blow and show Mo Qi what the outer sect's top alchemist truly looked like.