Chapter 123 – Tallying the Harvest, Danyang Peak Lord's Generous Welcome Gift

[Special Talent: Fairy Lotus Womb]

[Effect 1. Immortal Spirit Breath: Increases Spiritual Power limit by tenfold. Greatly enhances Spiritual Power recovery speed, purifying Spiritual Power within a hundred-meter radius of oneself.]

[Effect 2. Soul Lotus Embryo: Increases Divine Soul strength by tenfold. Can condense Soul Petals for movement, defense, attack, etc… Can store Magic Treasures within the soul, slowly strengthening them.]

Lu Chen looked at the ‘Fairy Lotus Womb’ he had obtained through the Dao’s blessing.

He immediately understood just how terrifying this blessing was.

If nothing else, the tenfold increase in Spiritual Power limit from ‘Immortal Spirit Breath’ alone widened the gap between Lu Chen and cultivators of the same level to an almost frightening degree.

After all, having undergone the baptism of five Heavenly Tribulations, his original Spiritual Power limit had already been raised to ‘1.5 million points.’

Factoring in the cultivation boost from the ‘Nine Luminosity Spirit Pearl,’

His base Spiritual Power limit alone had reached ‘1.55 million points.’

And now, with the enhancement from ‘Immortal Spirit Breath,’

His Spiritual Power limit instantly soared to an astonishing ‘15.5 million points.’

Compared to the pitiful ‘100,000 points’ Spiritual Power limit of an ordinary ninth-grade Human Dao Foundation Establishment Stage cultivator,

Lu Chen’s Spiritual Power cultivation at the Foundation Establishment Stage was over 150 times that of a typical Foundation Establishment cultivator.

Quantity leads to quality; with such immense Spiritual Power cultivation as support,

Lu Chen could not only suppress other Foundation Establishment Stage cultivators with pure cultivation alone,

But he could also employ many spells that were otherwise impossible to cast at the Foundation Establishment Stage, relying solely on this overwhelming cultivation advantage.

And this was only the basic attribute improvement from ‘Immortal Spirit Breath.’

It was important to note that aside from increasing the Spiritual Power limit, Immortal Spirit Breath also had the effect of purifying surrounding Spiritual Power.

At first, Lu Chen wasn’t quite sure what this so-called purification meant.

But he quickly understood.

This wasn’t purification at all—it was a special Domain disguised as purification!

The so-called purification was actually converting all surrounding Spiritual Power into Spiritual Power that he could absorb.

This effect not only greatly enhanced Lu Chen’s cultivation speed

But also ensured that Lu Chen was always in an ‘advantageous environment,’

Where his strength wouldn’t be affected by external conditions.

For example, if ordinary cultivators entered some ancient Forbidden Land,

They might struggle to absorb the highly polluted Spiritual Power there due to the special environment or Spiritual Power attributes.

But with ‘Immortal Spirit Breath,’ Lu Chen was different.

He could passively and automatically convert Spiritual Power within a hundred-meter radius,

Regardless of its attributes or whether it was polluted,

All of it could be transformed into Spiritual Power usable by him.

Thus, Lu Chen could maintain his peak strength in almost any environment.

How crucial this was for a cultivator went without saying.

And this was only the effect of ‘Immortal Spirit Breath’ within the ‘Fairy Lotus Womb.’

The other effect, ‘Soul Lotus Embryo,’ was no less impressive.

In Lu Chen’s perception, the Soul Lotus Embryo meant that his Divine Soul had undergone a qualitative transformation of some kind.He could clearly see a unique soul lotus quietly resting within his Sea of Consciousness, having replaced the original Magic Treasure·Mind-Calming Lotus Platform he had exchanged from Gu Xian.

What puzzled Lu Chen was that this Magic Treasure, the Mind-Calming Lotus Platform, had somehow vanished from his Divine Soul.

Regarding this, Lu Chen speculated it might be because the initial Great Dao Blessing he received did not originally include the ‘Soul Lotus Embryo’ component.

But something unknown had occurred during this Great Dao Blessing process.

It seemed the Heavenly Dao had transformed the purified Ancient Fiend Gift, the Magic Treasure Mind-Calming Lotus Platform, directly into a brand new Great Dao Blessing.

Therefore, in essence, the Great Dao Blessing·Fairy Lotus Womb was actually composed of two blessings.

One was the Immortal Spirit Breath, and the other was the Soul Lotus Embryo.

Lu Chen believed this was the true nature of the ‘Fairy Lotus Womb’.

He arrived at this conclusion because before initiating his Foundation Establishment Stage Breakthrough, he had researched historical records about the transformations experienced by those who received Great Dao Blessings.

Among these individuals, one had obtained a blessing called ‘Immortal Spirit Body’.

The effects of this blessing closely resembled those of the ‘Immortal Spirit Breath’ within the Fairy Lotus Womb.

This led Lu Chen to deduce that his Fairy Lotus Womb was likely the result of two blessings merging.

While the ‘Soul Lotus Embryo’, derived from the Ancient Fiend Gift·Mind-Calming Lotus Platform, lacked the immediate tangibility of the ‘Immortal Spirit Breath’, Lu Chen fully understood its astonishing potential.

Beyond the tenfold enhancement in Divine Soul strength, the ‘Soul Petals’ capability alone left him astounded.

‘Can condense Soul Petals for movement, defense, and attack…’

Though his current cultivation level limited him to manifesting only three Soul Petals, these three alone made him acutely aware of their tremendous impact on his abilities.

In front of his Cave Residence at Danyang Peak, Lu Chen activated one Soul Petal.

Instantly, his body dissolved into countless petals and vanished from the spot.

He reappeared a hundred meters away.

A single Soul Petal had teleported him a hundred meters.

This limited range was due to his current modest Divine Soul strength and cultivation level preventing longer distances.

Should his cultivation advance to the Golden Core Stage, his enhanced cultivation and Divine Soul strength might enable instantaneous travel thousands of miles away.

This near ‘Ground Shrinking to an Inch’ movement technique not only drastically improved Lu Chen’s escape capabilities but also significantly amplified his offensive potential.

Moreover, the Soul Petals provided defense against soul-based attacks.

A single ‘Great Dao Blessing’ had fundamentally transformed Lu Chen’s combat prowess.

If he were to encounter the Pseudo-core Stage Cultivator Hao Fu now, Lu Chen was confident he could defeat him head-on without resorting to the Heretical Sword or Great Dao Fragment (Return to Heaven).

Even when facing the Golden Core-level Black Rock King from the Three-School Joint Exam, Lu Chen felt that while he might not emerge victorious, he could certainly escape unscathed.

Despite being only at the first layer of Foundation Establishment, Lu Chen sensed he was beginning to embody the concept of ‘Invincible Below Golden Core’.

Such was the terrifying power of a First-Grade Great Dao Immortal Foundation.

Beyond the Great Dao Blessing, Lu Chen had obtained another valuable reward.That was the second innate divine ability awakened after completing the third novice mission… Three-Inch Time.

[Innate Divine Ability: Three-Inch Time]

[Rank: First Realm (1%)]

[Effect: Upon activation, allows the user to foresee the target’s situation three seconds into the future. The greater the cultivation gap, the more targets involved, and the longer the duration, the more spiritual power required to use this divine ability.]

Three-Inch Time was a true space-time technique.

Its effect could be described as simple yet brutal.

Foreseeing three seconds into the future offered Lu Chen numerous possibilities to exploit.

Not only could it allow Lu Chen to anticipate his enemies’ movements in advance,

but also, when this divine ability’s rank increased in the future and provided longer foresight duration,

he might even rely on his Azure Lotus Eyes’ capability to copy techniques his enemies hadn’t yet used,

achieving the element of surprise.

However, all this depended on whether his Azure Lotus Eyes currently had available space to copy additional techniques.

After experiencing this heavenly tribulation, Lu Chen discovered that the remaining space in his Azure Lotus Eyes for copying other techniques… was quite limited.

[Divine Ability: Divine Firmament Lightning]

[Effect: A special heavenly lightning containing a trace of heavenly tribulation power, impossible for ordinary people to withstand]

Divine Firmament Lightning was the special divine ability Lu Chen had copied using his Azure Lotus Eyes.

It was also the result of his risky decision to use Azure Lotus Eyes during his previous tribulation transcendence.

Worried that using Divine Firmament Lightning might bring terrifying side effects similar to when he used Heretical Sword before,

Lu Chen temporarily didn’t dare to test this divine ability’s effects.

But it didn’t matter, as the cooldown time for his first instance, ‘Ancient Cultivator Tomb,’ had long since ended.

The only reason he hadn’t re-entered was because he had been busy with foundation establishment recently.

Otherwise, he could have returned to that instance much earlier.

Although Lu Chen wasn’t particularly interested in the rewards from this instance at present,

the instance’s unique characteristic of allowing infinite revives meant he could experiment with many things he wouldn’t dare try in reality.

Therefore, in a sense, instances were the best places for him to test his capabilities.

Moreover, Lu Chen felt that the three instances he had unlocked might not be as simple as he initially thought.

Take the second instance, ‘Ancient Sword Tomb,’ for example.

The reason he could only reach the Sword Pavilion’s third floor before wasn’t because there was no path forward,

but because the subsequent areas were blocked by patches of black mist.

That black mist would have meant instant death for his previous self.

But for his current self, who had mastered Immortal Spirit Breath, that black mist might no longer prevent him from exploring further.

Thinking of this, Lu Chen suddenly wondered:

Was the appearance of this ‘Immortal Spirit Breath’ that could counter the strange black mist a bit too timely?

Could there really be such coincidences in this world?

Before Lu Chen could ponder further, three figures descended from the sky and landed beside him.

He was quite familiar with two of them – Gu Liqing and Jing Gong.

But the third person, a woman with an enchanting figure and mature bearing whose impressive bust couldn’t be concealed even by loose Daoist robes, was rather unfamiliar to him.

However, after noticing the token at her waist and the Three-patterned Azure Cloud Robe exclusively worn by Azure Cloud Sect’s Peak Lords, Lu Chen quickly deduced her identity.

“Disciple Lu Chen pays respects to Danyang Peak Lord, Perfected Luolan, and Azure Cloud Sect Leader, Perfected Cloud Chess.”Hearing this, Gu Liqing merely nodded, but Du Youlan beside him expressed some surprise: “Huh? You actually recognize me, kid? Didn’t you just join the sect not long ago?”

Lu Chen raised his head and replied, “…This disciple recognized your identity by the token at your waist and the robes you wear, Honored One.”

Du Youlan glanced at the token on her waist, then looked down at her slightly tight-fitting clothes, only then realizing belatedly.

“Oh right, I forgot about these things.”

After speaking, Du Youlan came to Lu Chen’s side and began circling around him curiously.

At such close proximity, Lu Chen immediately caught the scent of elegant violet fragrance.

Being scrutinized so closely by a mature older sister made Lu Chen somewhat uncomfortable.

However, given her status as a Nascent Soul Stage powerhouse, he didn’t dare say much.

After observing for a while, Du Youlan said curiously to Lu Chen: “So this is the Immortal Spirit Body? It does look different from ordinary people.”

Hearing that Du Youlan seemed to have mistaken his Dao-bestowed blessing, Lu Chen didn’t bother to explain.

“Alright, Junior Sister Du, Lu Chen has just completed his breakthrough. Let him rest properly instead of asking so many questions.”

Du Youlan turned her head and gave Gu Liqing an annoyed look.

“What’s wrong with me, as Peak Lord of Danyang Peak, checking on my own disciple? Looking won’t hurt anything.”

“…”

“Alright, Senior Sister Du, I think Sect Leader Senior Brother is right. Us old folks shouldn’t linger here any longer. Let’s give young Lu some time to stabilize his cultivation.”

Seeing both Jing Gong and Gu Liqing saying this, Du Youlan pouted, then took out a medicine bottle from her storage bag and handed it to Lu Chen.

“This contains twenty Jade Heaven Pills. Take them – they can ensure your body won’t sustain any hidden injuries.”

“Make sure to take them, and don’t try to save them for me. I can get as many of these pills as I want – you could even eat them as snacks.”

Hearing Du Youlan’s words, Lu Chen curiously examined the medicine bottle in his hand.

[Name: Jade Heaven Pill]

[Quality: Perfect]

[Effect: Can rapidly restore large amounts of spiritual power and qi-blood, nourish the cultivator’s divine soul to some extent, improve the cultivator’s physique, can be taken multiple times]

Jade Heaven Pills can actually nourish a cultivator’s divine soul?!

Looking at the effects of this Jade Heaven Pill, Lu Chen was inwardly astonished.

At his current realm, he knew all too well how scarce pills that could nourish a cultivator’s divine soul were.

It was no exaggeration to say that if these Jade Heaven Pills were sold outside the Azure Cloud Sect,

a single pill might be exchanged for an ordinary magical artifact.

The main reason many Foundation Establishment Stage cultivators couldn’t break through to the Golden Core Stage

was that their divine soul strength was insufficient, preventing them from condensing their immortal foundation into a core.

Therefore, pills like Jade Heaven Pill that could nourish a cultivator’s divine soul effectively increased their core formation success rate.

Not to mention that Jade Heaven Pills also possessed the combined effects of ‘Spirit Gathering Pills’ and ‘Qi Blood Pills’.

If taken at a critical moment, they might allow a cultivator to turn certain defeat into victory.

Describing these Jade Heaven Pills as worth their weight in gold was truly no exaggeration.

Thinking this, Lu Chen felt somewhat reluctant to consume them.

Because for his current needs, these pills would merely accelerate the recovery of his spiritual power and qi-blood.But at present, no one in the Azure Cloud Sect posed any threat to him, making it completely unnecessary to waste such a precious Jade Heaven Pill.

As if guessing Lu Chen’s thoughts, Du Youlan patted her ample chest and declared with unbridled generosity, “I told you to eat these pills freely—I have plenty to spare.”

“Oh, right, I heard from your master that you’ve been refining Essence Nourishing Pills. I happened to have some I made for fun before—I’ll give them all to you now.”

Without waiting for Lu Chen’s refusal, Du Youlan shoved a medicine bottle into his hands with the same bold demeanor.

[Name: Essence Nourishing Pill]

[Quality: Perfect]

[Effect: After consumption, gain 1000 experience points. Can only take one per day.]

Lu Chen stared blankly at the medicine bottle in his hand, seemingly astonished by Du Youlan’s extravagance.

After a moment’s thought, Du Youlan appeared to decide these pills weren’t enough.

She began rummaging through her storage bag again.

“Here, take this bottle of Mind Focusing Pills too. They’ll help you enter cultivation state faster and provide some protection against Heart Demons.”

“And this Golden Beetle Blood Pill—it can strengthen your blood circulation and gradually enhance your physique.”

“This one’s good too… oh, never mind, I’ll give you this as well…”

Before long, Lu Chen found his hands filled with various bottles containing all kinds of elixirs.

Any single one of these pills would make rogue cultivators fight desperately to obtain them.

For a moment, Lu Chen almost saw a golden aura radiating behind Du Youlan.

This wasn’t just the Peak Lord of Danyang Peak—this was practically a merciful Bodhisattva descending to the mortal realm!

Ahem, ahem. “Alright, Junior Sister Du, if you keep giving him things, aren’t you going to end up distributing pills that should have been submitted to the sect?”

“At least save some for the Elders of other peaks. After all, many of the ingredients for these pills were painstakingly gathered by them, weren’t they?”

Hearing this, Du Youlan retorted righteously, “These are pills I refined myself—who I give them to is my business!”

“Besides, my peak has finally produced a talented disciple. What’s wrong with giving him some extra pills?”

“…”

Faced with Du Youlan’s forceful attitude, Gu Liqing momentarily found himself at a loss for words.

It was true that she had refined these pills herself.

But many of the ingredients had indeed been provided by other sect members.

However, Du Youlan wasn’t completely unreasonable.

After examining the pills she’d given Lu Chen, she decided they should suffice for his current needs.

Relenting, she said, “Fine, fine, I’ll listen to you for now, Senior Brother. I won’t give him any more pills.”

But stopping with pills didn’t mean Du Youlan was done giving.

Her eyes sparkling with an idea, she rummaged through her storage bag and produced a small purple cauldron.

Seeing this cauldron, Jing Gong—who had been cheerfully observing until now—suddenly changed expression and urgently said, “Senior Sister, isn’t that the magic treasure you were refining for me? You’re going to give it to Little Lu too?”

Du Youlan shot him a disdainful look. “With your level of talent, such a fine cauldron would be wasted on you. What’s wrong with me giving it to Little Lu? Do you have any objections?”

Jing Gong: “…”

He wanted to object, but he felt that if he actually voiced his complaints, Du Youlan might immediately demonstrate what a Nascent Soul cultivator’s iron fist felt like.

Even though Du Youlan was an alchemist who wasn’t skilled in combat.But Jing Gong was also an alchemist, and only a Golden Core Stage alchemist at that.

Du Youlan had him completely under her thumb, as easy as taking candy from a baby!

So, although he was somewhat reluctant,

Jing Gong ultimately watched helplessly as the alchemy furnace that should have been his was given to Lu Chen by Du Youlan, who was essentially presenting a gift on his behalf.

After doing all this, Du Youlan patted Lu Chen’s shoulder contentedly and said cheerfully, “Work hard! Whether our Danyang Peak can become the top peak of Azure Cloud Sect in the future all depends on you, kid!”

When you receive a gift, your hands feel tied; when you eat someone’s food, your words soften.

Having just received such a generous welcoming gift from Du Youlan, Lu Chen immediately replied, “Disciple Lu Chen thanks Peak Lord Du for the reward.”

“Hahaha, no need to be so polite, no need! This is just a small gesture, nothing more!”

“Wait until I go back and do some research—I’ll prepare some even bigger gifts for you later.”

“Don’t worry about wasting resources. Our Danyang Peak may not have much else, but we have plenty of elixirs and spirit stones!”

“Oh, and have your master arrange for you to take over some of our Danyang Peak’s mortal world assets. Let him assign you the wealthiest ones. After all, you’re now a Direct Lineage Disciple of our peak, qualified to manage some of our sect’s industries.”

“Don’t worry, these assets are easy to manage. If they run into trouble, they’ll naturally come to the sect looking for you. If you can handle it, handle it. If not, go find your master and have him go down the mountain to resolve it.”

Hearing this, Jing Gong, who was standing nearby, grumbled discontentedly, “Senior Sister, I am, after all, Little Lu’s nominal master. Why do you make me sound like an errand boy?”

Du Youlan glared at him and threatened, “What, you have a problem with that?”

Jing Gong shrank back, clearly quite intimidated by Du Youlan.

So, even though he felt a bit wronged, he ultimately replied, “No problem, I have no problem at all. Whatever makes you happy.”

“Hahaha! That’s more like it!”

Du Youlan glanced at the cave residence behind Lu Chen and suddenly slapped her forehead, saying, “I think this cave residence is pretty good too. Why not give it to Little Lu as well? He did successfully overcome the Heavenly Tribulation here, so this place obviously has a connection with him.”

“What! You’re giving away the cave residence too?!”

“What, you have a problem again?”

“N-No…”

Lu Chen watched as Jing Gong was completely dominated by Du Youlan and couldn’t help but laugh.

Because to him, this scene didn’t seem like a relationship between a senior sister and junior brother at all.

It looked more like an older sister and her younger brother.

Azure Cloud Sect was indeed different from other places.

For many disciples of Azure Cloud Sect, this was not just a sect—it was their home.

The disciples within the sect were not merely fellow sect members but family.

However, Lu Chen’s good mood didn’t last long.

Because he soon noticed the main quest he had just unlocked.

【Main Quest: Exterminate the Immortal Abomination】

【Quest Requirements: ……】

(End of Chapter)