Money Was All It Took

Early the next morning, Ye Tianyi dragged Lu Changsheng out of his sleep.

As agreed yesterday, he was taking his junior brother out to begin cultivating today. In moments, they had already left the Cangyun Sect.

"Senior Brother, even if we're going to cultivate, there's no need to rush this much, is there? It's not even light yet!" Lu Changsheng said, bleary-eyed.

"A day's plans begin in the morning; a lifetime's plans rest on diligence. As cultivators, we ought to be diligent. With Master away, I was busy cultivating and neglected your discipline. From today onward, I'll supervise you!"

Ye Tianyi spoke with absolute conviction.

Lu Changsheng was speechless. After leaving him to roam free for ten years, suddenly pulling this on him was really hard to get used to.

"How about we wait for Master to come back and have him supervise me himself? Sorry for the trouble, Senior Brother!"

He had thought Ye Tianyi would relent at that.

Instead, his expression grew solemn.

"Junior Brother, there was something I'd been meaning to find a chance to tell you. Since you've brought it up, I might as well tell you now!"

"What is it? Is Master on his last legs?" Lu Changsheng froze.

Ye Tianyi shook his head. After a long silence, he slowly said, "Originally, I was traveling with Master, but two years ago, he suddenly disappeared!"

"Disappeared?"

"Yes. I searched for two years without hearing a thing. With no other choice, I could only return to the sect. But you mustn't mention this to outsiders, in case it brings trouble. Right now, only the sect's higher-ups know!"

Ye Tianyi was utterly serious.

Lu Changsheng, however, was completely speechless.

Back then, he had been walking down the road, minding his own business, when an old man descended from the sky. The old man insisted that he had exceptional root bone and was a one-in-ten-thousand cultivation prodigy, trying every argument to take him as a disciple.

In the end, he had simply tied him up and hauled him onto Qingyun Peak. What a pity about his vast fortune-who knew who had inherited it?

He could have let that slide. He had figured that since he was already here, at least he would be cultivating immortality. If he succeeded, wouldn't he be able to become a scourge upon the land?

What he had never expected was that, on his second day on the mountain, the old man would dump him on Eldest Senior Brother and head off traveling himself.

He had been gone for ten years, without sparing a thought for how deeply growing up in such a cruel environment would scar an eight-year-old child.

And Lu Changsheng had ended up saddled with a physique that devoured people.

Lu Changsheng wanted to cry, but had no tears. He had spent ten years treading carefully and had at least managed to grow up, only to be told now that his master was lost...

"Just what sort of pirate ship did I board...?"

For a moment, all five flavors churned in his heart. What difference was there between having this master and not having him?

Ye Tianyi did not notice his change at all and kept talking.

"I heard from the sect that Master came to the Cangyun Sect over a hundred years ago. He seemed to have lost his memory when he arrived. Then, over ten years ago, he suddenly remembered something and wanted to travel. The sect was worried and sent me along, but I ended up losing track of him..."

At this point, he actually sounded rather guilty.

Lu Changsheng was speechless, though he could tell that his senior brother was another pitiful soul with an honest, straightforward nature.

"Say no more, Senior Brother. Just focus on cultivating!"

He had only meant to comfort him.

Instead, Ye Tianyi nodded vigorously.

"You're right, Little Junior Brother. I'll focus on cultivating. Once I reach Core Formation, I'll go out and search. I'll definitely bring our master back!"

"..."

Lu Changsheng had no answer. Clearly, their master had abandoned him and run off somewhere to enjoy himself, yet he was still thinking of finding him and bringing him back.

As they talked, they reached the foot of a mountain, their destination for this trip!

But looking at the peak, Lu Changsheng frowned again.

"You dragged me out of bed at the crack of dawn just to bring me to the outer disciples' trial grounds?"

Lu Changsheng was dazed.

This place was several hundred li from the sect and was specifically intended for outer disciples' trials.

Though others saw him as having only Third Layer of Spirit Gathering cultivation, no match for those direct disciples, bringing him here was still looking down on him a little. At the very least, he should have been taken to the inner disciples' trial grounds.

Ye Tianyi said quietly, "There's something you don't know, Junior Brother. The sect has increased the difficulty here. It's different from before. And hardly anyone knows that an earth spirit vein lies hidden here. Even Eldest Senior Brother has come here to cultivate!"

Lu Changsheng sighed softly. He knew Eldest Senior Brother was here; he had arrived last night.

Besides, he had known about the spirit vein here for years and had nearly drained it dry. What damn use was coming now?

Still, he could not be bothered to say anything more.

Though there was no longer anything remarkable about this place, it did have the advantage of being quiet. With twenty thousand Spirit Stones on hand, he could cultivate in peace for once.

Once they arrived, Ye Tianyi watched Lu Changsheng begin cultivating before sitting down beside him in satisfaction.

Looking at his senior brother, Lu Changsheng felt helpless too. He meant well and wanted to help him.

He simply began cultivating as well. Raising his cultivation was the proper path.

After all, ever since witnessing the cruelty of the cultivation world, where death and the dissolution of one's Dao could come at any turn, he had never dared slack off, afraid a single careless moment would leave him dead in some unknown place.

What distressed him, however, was that the twenty thousand Spirit Stones were soon devoured, yet he was still a long way from the Ninth Layer of Core Formation. Without a hundred thousand Spirit Stones or so, he could not break through at all.

"If the Ninth Layer of Core Formation takes this much, how much will Nascent Soul take? Is this really going to force me to rob and plunder?"

Lu Changsheng felt utterly helpless.

The amount of Spiritual Qi he needed was far too immense. The Spiritual Qi he had devoured would have been more than enough to produce two Void Transformation experts.

He only wanted to break through to Nascent Soul as soon as possible. According to the records, once the Myriad Tribulations Immortal Physique reached Nascent Soul, cultivating would no longer bring that kind of pain, though every breakthrough would require enduring a tribulation.

Ultimately, he still lacked Spirit Stones. But the amount was so enormous that he had no idea how long saving up would take. Ning Yuxin flashed through his mind again.

"As the richest man's daughter, she should be loaded!"

At that thought, an idea immediately arose, and he quietly left to return to the sect.

He had already spent several days here. Ning Yuxin should have successfully developed Sword Intent by now. He would go back and see whether there was anything else she needed to improve.

Before long, Lu Changsheng returned to the sect and hurried straight to Qingyun Peak without stopping.

As soon as he returned, he saw her sitting on the stone table, a pile of books and scrolls before her, her face filled with worry and disappointment.

"Junior Sister Ning, did you fail? That shouldn't be!"

Lu Changsheng looked puzzled. He could already sense the Sword Intent she had developed coiled within her body.

Ning Yuxin looked up and gave a soft sigh. "I succeeded!"

"Then why are you still upset? Is Eldest Senior Brother still ignoring you?"

"No!" Ning Yuxin shook her head. "After I condensed Sword Intent, Eldest Senior Brother's attitude toward me changed a great deal. He even thoughtfully explained the Sword Dao to me and gave me all his handwritten notes on his cultivation insights. He comes to explain them to me every day!"

"Isn't that great? You've gotten closer! What are you still worried about?" Lu Changsheng asked.

From what he knew of Eldest Senior Brother, almost nothing but the Sword Dao could draw his attention: a unique surviving Sword Dao text, the handwritten notes of a predecessor, or someone else who cultivated the Sword Dao.

This was clearly a success.

Ning Yuxin pointed at the table. "But I've been reading these for days and still can't understand them. If enough time passes and he discovers I haven't made the slightest progress, will he...?"

Lu Changsheng immediately understood her concern and casually picked up the books to read.

After a while, he could not help nodding. "They are rather complicated. Without reaching the fifth or sixth layer of the Sword Dao, you really wouldn't understand them!"

The more Ning Yuxin thought about it, the more anxious she grew.

Lu Changsheng, however, said, "But it's not a big problem. As long as your Sword Intent keeps improving, he'll think you've understood what he said. Naturally, you'll spend more time together, and eventually affection will grow with time!"

Ning Yuxin's eyes lit up, only to dim again a moment later.

"Improving Sword Intent is easier said than done. I'm not a Sword Dao genius. How could I possibly improve in such a short time?"

She was like a deflated ball.

"It's actually not all that difficult!"

"Really?"

Ning Yuxin perked up.

Lu Changsheng smiled as well. "Money is all it takes!"