Chapter 307: Divine Wood Sword
After Hua Changxi returned to Dan Yuan Peak, her mood remained unsettled. Thinking of Nanxiang City, which was revealed by the Zhou Tian Star Chart, and the Twelve Grotto Heavens that guarded it, she flashed into the Secret Realm and teleported directly to Lingguang Hall.
Due to the influx of cultivators from various regions into the capital, Lingguang Hall also experienced a peak in applications.
Looking at the hundreds of figures struggling forward in the plaza, Hua Changxi’s heart stirred, and the Vermilion Bird Army Roster appeared in her hand.
“Over fifteen thousand Vermilion Bird Army members now.”
Hua Changxi hadn’t expected that deploying Display Spiritual Artifacts across various regions would not only solve the recruitment problem for the Five Great Sacred Lands but also bring Lingguang Hall into the sight of cultivators everywhere, accelerating the recruitment progress for the Vermilion Bird Army.
This was truly an unexpected joy!
In fact, the impact of the Display Spiritual Artifacts extended far beyond this.
If the earth-shattering battle at Five Finger Mountain marked the full emergence of Spiritual Energy Revival into public view, then the deployment of Display Spiritual Artifacts signified that cultivators who were confined to their hometowns began to move, gaining the motivation to explore outwards.
It could be said that with the movement and exchange of cultivators, the Immortal Cultivation Era of the Four Spirit Realm had truly arrived.
Although the Vermilion Bird Army had increased, Hua Changxi wasn’t particularly happy.
The reason was simple: the more Vermilion Bird Army members there were, the greater the consumption.
Lingguang Hall, apart from the Cultivation Methods in the Transmission Platform, only had the advantage of dense Fire Spiritual Energy suitable for cultivation. Unlike the Dan Yuan Secret Realm, it didn’t provide abundant Resources to support her in training Apprentices.
In other words, she would have to support all the Vermilion Bird Army members herself!
Ten thousand Vermilion Bird Army members – how many Resources would that consume?
The more Hua Changxi thought about it, the more her head ached. She stopped looking at the cultivators in the plaza who wanted to join, returned directly to the main hall, took out paper and brush, and drew Nanxiang City and the Twelve Grotto Heavens.
“The Twelve Grotto Heavens guard Nanxiang City, so the existence of the Twelve Grotto Heavens is all in service of Nanxiang City?”
“Lingguang Hall is the garrison for the Vermilion Bird Army, so one of the Vermilion Bird Army’s duties is to maintain the stability of Nanxiang City.”
“Then, could the other Grotto Heavens be places that provide Resources for the Vermilion Bird Army?”
Hua Changxi drew and wrote on the paper, and the more she thought, the more she felt her guess was correct.
But if that were the case, to ensure the Resource supply for the Vermilion Bird Army, wouldn’t she have to seize all the other eleven Grotto Heavens?
Hua Changxi’s head throbbed. Not to mention the Royal Family’s various arrangements for Nanxiang City, even the Demon Race was involved. If she were to seize one or two Grotto Heavens, she would have some confidence, but to seize all eleven Grotto Heavens, she truly didn’t have that confidence.
“No, no!”
“I’ve misunderstood!”
“The responsibility of consolidating the Twelve Grotto Heavens should fall to the Nanxiang City Lord. Lingguang Hall is responsible for maintaining Nanxiang City’s stability, so it should ask the City Lord for a salary.”
Thinking this, Hua Changxi immediately felt relieved.
As for who would become the Nanxiang City Lord, it wasn’t up to her to decide, so there was no need to think about it, as it would be useless.
“The Vermilion Bird Army has over fifteen thousand members; they can’t remain a scattered force like before. They need to be organized into teams.”
“We can worry about the Commanders of Ten Thousand later, but it’s time to start looking for candidates for Commanders of a Thousand.”
Hua Changxi planned to use the pretext of investigating the anomaly in Nanxiang City to infiltrate the Vermilion Bird Army and assess candidates for Commander of a Thousand.
“Sigh.”
There was still a mountain of things to do on Dan Yuan Peak, and in November, she had to go to Number Six Hall to teach Apprentices Alchemy. Now, she had to busy herself with Lingguang Hall’s affairs. She knew some things shouldn’t be taken on so casually.
“Whether it’s Dan Yuan Peak or Lingguang Hall, I need to cultivate more capable helpers!”
Hua Changxi posted an announcement in the Mission Hall: ‘Lingguang Hall will soon select Commanders of a Thousand. Those with aspirations should prepare themselves.’ Then, she teleported back to Dan Yuan Peak.
Dan Yuan Peak was quiet and peaceful under the moonlight. Just as Hua Changxi was about to go to the Bamboo House to extract Snake Demon Essence Blood, she suddenly sensed spatial fluctuations to the north of Dan Yuan Peak and immediately flew towards it.
To the north of Dan Yuan Peak was a gray expanse, which was the Barrier, preventing further entry.
When Hua Changxi had previously scouted the surroundings of Dan Yuan Peak, she had attempted to break through the Barrier to explore inside, but unfortunately, she had failed.
However, at this moment, she saw Dugu Lie emerge from within the Barrier.
In Dugu Lie’s hand was a green wooden sword. With a gentle swipe of the wooden sword, it cut open a gap in the Barrier.
“That wooden sword is…”
Hua Changxi’s eyes widened in shock, recalling what Tong Yao had told her about the token unique to Sacred Land successors – the Divine Wood Sword!
“Senior Brother Dugu!”
A voice, mixed with suppressed anger, rang out. Hua Changxi looked and saw Wan Feng running towards Dugu Lie with an annoyed expression.
Wan Feng said angrily, “Senior Brother Dugu, didn’t I tell you not to enter the Forbidden Area casually? If the Peak Master finds out, our identities will be exposed.”
Dugu Lie: “…It wasn’t intentional. It’s just that I’m at a breakthrough point. If I don’t enter the Forbidden Area, my Cultivation can’t be hidden.”
Hearing this, Wan Feng had nothing more to say. “Let’s leave here quickly before anyone sees us.”
“Senior Brother Dugu, although this time there was a reason, next time you need to enter the Forbidden Area, you should inform me first. I’ll try to find out where the Peak Master is.”
“Don’t think that just because the Peak Master almost always stays in the Secret Realm and doesn’t come out, it means she won’t patrol Dan Yuan Peak.”
Dugu Lie: “Alright, next time I need to enter the Forbidden Area, I will inform you in advance.”
After Wan Feng and Dugu Lie had walked far away, Hua Changxi descended from the sky and looked at their retreating figures. “They are actually successors of the Dan Sheng Hall!”
However, she couldn’t understand why they were being so secretive.
What would happen if their identities were exposed?
Compared to other Sacred Lands, the revival of the Dan Sheng Hall was definitely leading. If the successors of the Dan Sheng Hall appeared, they could take the lead and perhaps quickly resolve the complex and chaotic situation of the Medical Affairs Department!
Hua Changxi then thought that if the successors of the Dan Sheng Hall could place people in Dan Yuan Peak, they could also place people in other locations.
So, were they aiming for a “mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind” strategy?
After people like her and Meng Qingyao fought to the death at the forefront, would they come out afterwards to reap the benefits?
Thinking this, Hua Changxi instinctively felt displeasure. “Compared to the successors of other Sacred Lands, the successors of the Dan Sheng Hall are too irresponsible!”
“If they want to be turtles hiding in their shells, then let them be turtles forever.”
Hua Changxi withdrew her gaze and looked at the Barrier. After failing to break through it again, she flew back to the Bamboo House on the peak, took out the Snake Demon Corpse, and began to refine the Essence Blood.
By the time the extracted Essence Blood was sealed, it was already bright daylight.
Just then, Pharmacist Xu sent a message: “Peak Master, Hall Master Huo is here. He said he’s here to deliver Demonic Beast Corpses to you.”
After receiving the message, Hua Changxi went directly to the Personnel Department.
Huo Yunxiao directly placed the corpses of three Nascent Soul stage Demonic Beasts at the foot of Dan Yuan Peak, attracting a crowd of onlookers.
When Hua Changxi arrived, she waved her hand and collected the Demonic Beast Corpses into her Sumeru Mustard Seed, then looked at Huo Yunxiao. “What Demonic Beast Blood do you want?”
Huo Yunxiao leaned towards Hua Changxi. “I don’t want Demonic Beast Blood. Can you answer one question for me?”
Hua Changxi: “Speak.”
Huo Yunxiao’s smile faded. “Is the Body Refining Cultivation Method that the Hua Clan members cultivate something you obtained from Qihuang Hall?”
Hua Changxi glanced at him but said nothing.
Huo Yunxiao took her silence as default. “To be honest, the Heavenly Department also has other Body Refining Cultivation Methods, but those methods have significant flaws. They either require drinking Demonic Beast Blood or boiling it into a Medicinal Bath. Do you know the consequences of using Demonic Beast Blood?”
Hua Changxi’s eyes flickered.
Huo Yunxiao: “It can lead to bloodlust, and even some Demonization characteristics. There are already quite a few such people in the Demon Suppressing Army.”
“We have studied the Body Refining Cultivation Method you gave to the Hua Clan members. It is currently the most suitable Body Refining Cultivation Method for humans to cultivate among those we have.”
“As you know, cultivators with Spiritual Roots are a minority. Most people do not have Spiritual Roots, and to cultivate, they can only rely on Body Refining.”
“Therefore, the Heavenly Department wishes to exchange with you for the complete Body Refining Cultivation Method from Qihuang Hall.”
Hua Changxi shook her head. “It cannot be exchanged. I haven’t fully comprehended the Body Refining Cultivation Methods in Qihuang Hall either.” Seeing Huo Yunxiao’s disbelieving expression, she paused.
“How about this, I’ll have Yu Fu post the first three chapters of the Qi Huang Body Refining Technique at the entrance of the Medical Affairs Department later. If you want it, you can copy it. As for the later chapters on Body Refining, I am truly powerless at the moment.”
