"It's all right. I'll get that old fellow Mo Changfeng to reforge it later. You've used this Clear Profound Sword for so many years anyway, so reforging it would do it good." Xie Ningshuang returned the broken sword to Ye Lingtian.
"Mm." Ye Lingtian nodded.
"I have some business at the Scripture Repository. As for the spirit spring, go ask that old fellow the sect master for it yourself later." With that, Xie Ningshuang flew off toward the Scripture Repository without stopping.
After she left, only Ye Lingfeng and Qian Renxue remained in the vast courtyard on Sword-Seeking Peak.
"Young master, what's a spirit spring? Why do you have to ask the sect master for it?" Qian Renxue couldn't help asking.
The people on the Douluo Continent grew curious as well. The spirit spring seemed important, or there would have been no need to ask Daoist Qingxu for it.
Hearing this, Ye Lingtian suddenly asked, "What form do you think spiritual Qi takes?"
"What form does spiritual Qi take? Gas?" Qian Renxue was taken aback. It was called spiritual Qi, so what else could it be? Of course it was a gas.
The people on the Douluo Continent were baffled too. What kind of question was that?
"That's right, it's a gas." Ye Lingtian smiled and nodded, leaving Qian Renxue speechless.
The people on the Douluo Continent were also rendered speechless by his words.
"This Ye Lingtian is deliberately looking for trouble, isn't he? Why can't he just say what he means instead of acting all mysterious?" Yu Xiaogang was so angry he laughed.
Pleased with his little joke, Ye Lingtian continued, "Spiritual Qi isn't equally dense everywhere. In the mortal world, for example, worldly influences are strong, so spiritual Qi is relatively scarce."
"In places far from human habitation, spiritual Qi is relatively abundant. In some places, spirit eyes can even appear."
"Spirit eyes?" Qian Renxue repeated the term, her face full of confusion.
"Spirit eye is just a metaphor. It doesn't mean spiritual Qi has grown eyes. Rather, it's like a spring's eye, spraying spiritual Qi outward."
"Wherever there's a spirit eye, spiritual Qi is extremely dense. There's one on Sword-Seeking Peak. Once you reach Foundation Establishment, I can take you to see it."
Ye Lingtian paused, then continued, "Around some large spirit eyes, spiritual Qi takes liquid form. That only happens when it's extremely dense."
"That's where spirit springs come from: spring water formed purely from accumulated spiritual Qi."
"There's only one such spirit spring in the entire Great Qin Dynasty. Never mind outer disciples-even peak masters need the sect master's permission to use it."
Only then did Qian Renxue nod in understanding.
"All right, that's enough of today's lesson. I see you've already entered the First Layer of Qi Refining, so take this as a gift for entering the Dao."
Ye Lingtian casually took a longsword from his storage bag. Its grade was very low, but when he was at Early Foundation Establishment, he had once used it to slay a demonic cultivator at Middle Foundation Establishment.
Ye Lingtian no longer had any use for it, so he would leave it to Qian Renxue.
It was as good as chicken ribs to Ye Lingtian, but to Qian Renxue, it was a rare treasure.
"How could I accept this?" Qian Renxue hurriedly stepped back several paces. "Young master, you've already given me a cultivation technique. How could I ask you for a magic treasure as well?"
Ye Lingtian firmly pressed it into her hands. "Just take it. I used this flying sword before, but it's no use to me now. Keeping it would only waste space in my storage bag, so take it."
Since Ye Lingtian had put it that way, Qian Renxue could hardly refuse. When she learned that he had used it before, her cheeks turned slightly red.
Giving someone a sword was no ordinary matter on the Douluo Continent. In the imperial family, it generally signified esteem and appreciation. Some clans even used swords as tokens of love.
Even though Qian Renxue knew Ye Lingtian was unaware of this, she couldn't stop her heart from fluttering.
"All right, I'm going to see the sect master. Focus on your cultivation." Ye Lingtian didn't notice Qian Renxue's expression. After speaking, he flew away on his sword, leaving her standing there alone.
On the other side of the sky screen, tears streamed down Qian Daoliu's aged face. He slapped the armrest in the Worship Hall and cheered repeatedly.
"Good lad! Xue'er was right about him!"
Yu Xiaogang pursed his lips and was about to say something: "It's just a lousy sword. Is there any need to make such a fuss?"
Everyone around him looked at him with undisguised disdain. Tang San's recent transformation into a eunuch and subsequent Body Possession by a demon had long since smashed his theories to pieces, and now no one was willing to indulge him.
Yu Xiaogang swallowed the rest of his words.
Meanwhile, Ye Lingtian rode a streak of blue-gold sword light and landed beneath the white jade steps of Sect Master Peak moments later.
The disciple guarding the entrance hurriedly saluted him. "Greetings, Martial Uncle Ye. The sect master has been waiting for you."
He lifted the door curtain and entered to find Daoist Qingxu sprawled over a low table, gnawing on a spirit peach. Beside him lay an open popular storybook, its cover bearing a picture of a little sword cultivator.
Seeing him arrive, the daoist didn't even lift an eyelid. He gave a muffled yawn. "I knew you'd come, lad."
Ye Lingtian was just about to cup his hands and explain why he had come when, before he could get half a sentence out, a soft hum sounded.
A black iron token flew straight toward him from the other side of the table. It bore the Primordial Sect's insignia, and flecks of light from a spring's eye gleamed around its edges.
"Sect Master, you already knew?" Ye Lingtian held the token and stared for a moment. He had prepared a whole speech.
He had even thought through how to explain that he needed the spirit spring to stabilize his cultivation at the Great Perfection of Golden Core and attempt to break through to Nascent Soul as soon as possible. He hadn't expected Daoist Qingxu to skip every unnecessary formality.
Daoist Qingxu tossed the peach pit into a jade dish beside him, then raised his eyes and rolled them at Ye Lingtian.
"Go on, go on. Stop bothering me. Once your injuries are healed, stop suppressing your cultivation and hurry up and break through to Nascent Soul. I don't know where this habit came from. When it's time to break through, you don't do it and insist on holding yourself back."
"Sect Master, how could you tell?" Ye Lingtian was taken aback. He had thought he'd hidden it well.
"What's your cultivation level, and what's mine? You think I couldn't tell?" Daoist Qingxu shot Ye Lingtian an irritated look.
"You can only get away with fooling Nascent Soul cultivators. At my level, do you think I can't tell whether you're ready to break through?"
Ye Lingtian's ears grew warm at his words. He hurriedly cupped his hands. "This disciple will never disappoint the sect's expectations. Once my injuries have healed, I will enter seclusion and break through to Nascent Soul."
Daoist Qingxu waved him out as if shooing away a fly. Ye Lingtian bowed his head and took his leave, clutching the spirit spring token as he turned and walked out of the sect master's hall. With a flash of sword light, he flew toward the depths of the sect.
After Ye Lingtian left, Daoist Qingxu thought of something and chuckled, an intrigued look appearing on his face.
Ye Lingtian had just used the spirit spring token to open the barrier to the spirit spring's secret realm when warm white mist, suffused with extraordinarily dense spiritual Qi, instantly enveloped him.
Before him, the translucent water of the spirit spring shimmered with flecks of silver light. The spiritual Qi was so dense it had nearly condensed into droplets.
He was still planning to circulate Heavenly Dipper Sword Intent and thoroughly purge the flower poison remaining in his meridians when his gaze swept across the spring's surface, and he froze on the spot.
"Senior Sister?!"
"Junior Brother Ye?!"