Lord Xue Ying
chapter-344

"Inner disciple?" Xue Ying felt his heart jolt.

Xi Wei looked at him, and the edges of her lips inched up slightly. "The sacred master receives several kinds of disciples. They are split into the ranks of honorary disciples, inner disciples, and personal disciples. Personal disciples have the highest status, followed by the inner disciples and lastly the honorary disciples. Even so, the sacred master has only received a total of three personal disciples throughout his long lifespan, since the requirements for becoming one are extremely harsh. A disciple must either have a grade one True Meaning or have grasped hold of a grade one Deity Heart in a cultivation period of ten thousand years. The sacred master woul take initiative in receiving anyone who meets either criteria as a personal disciple."

Xue Ying felt apprehensive inwardly.

Becoming a grade one True Meaning Transcendent was incredibly difficult.

Meanwhile, it was comparably easier to condense a grade one Deity Heart within ten thousand years of cultivation. One could first condense a grade two Deity Heart and then cultivate until it broke through to grade one. Most grade one True Meaning Transcendents could condense a grade one Deity Heart within three thousand years of cultivation.

"Of the sacred mater’s three personal disciples, one was a Transcendent with a grade one True Meaning while another one had grasped hold of a grade one Deity Heart within ten thousand years. The last one…was the sacred master’s favorite disciple. The master actually broke his own rules to take him in as a personal disciple," Xi Wei revealed. "The sacred master is already dead, so there’s no chance he’ll break any rules. That means the only ways of become a personal disciple are to comprehend a grade one True Meaning or to condense a grade one Deity Heart within ten thousand years."

Xue Ying helplessly replied, "Had I the means to comprehend a grade one True Meaning, the disaster the Xia Clan is facing would likely have already been resolved."

Xi Wei paused for a moment. She could tell from a glance that Xue Ying was still the most concerned about the calamity soon to befall the Xia Clan.

Xi Wei nodded. "That is true. Should you grasp hold of a grade one True Meaning, your combat power would be far beyond your current level, and you could simply force a triumph over the Sorcerer God and the Great Demonic God’s army. You could simply destroy that spatial passage in its entirety. On top of that, you only need to spread the news, and many powerful existences from the Deity world would take the initiative to receive you as their disciple. The Sorcerer God and the Great Demonic God? They aren’t worthy of being mentioned. Even then, should you really grasp hold of a grade one True Meaning, it would be best not to reveal you had done so. Otherwise, regardless of which master you accept, the others would still remember you and stop at nothing to eradicate you."

"Many of those incredible Transcendents with grade one True Meanings were actually killed during their period of growth," Xi Wei helplessly explained. "As a result, a large portion of the grade one True Meaning Transcendents which appeared throughout the long history were all extremely vigilant, and they only dared to gradually make that information public once they became World Deities."

Xue Ying nodded.

Grade one True Meaning…

In truth, he also desired to reach that realm, but according to various records he read, it was incredibly tough to break through! Such matters could not be forced, so the only option was to let nature run its course. As long as he did his best in his training, other matters were superfluous; overthinking things might even affect his inner heart.

"I wouldn’t dare say for certain that I can become a personal disciple," Xue Ying began, "but how can I become an inner disciple?"

"Follow me," Crimson Rock said.

...

A long stone step pavement—an area with many stone steps placed on the ground—spelled the path toward a towering mountain.

"Look." The three came over to the side of the stone pavement. Crimson Rock pointed ahead, to a location in the distance. "That is the Path of Reflection! It’s meant to test your inner heart and is much harder than even the fifth vine leaf trial. Most disciples of Crimson Rock Mountain will come over to walk through this Path of Reflection after becoming a Deity. The path is split into three sections.

"As a Transcendent, you would only have to pass the first section to get the first qualification for becoming an inner disciple."

Xue Ying looked at the Path of Reflection and a few thoughts on the subject surfaced. It seemed as if most powerful existences from the Deity world placed a huge emphasis on the inner heart of cultivators.

...

Soon, Crimson Rock and Xi Wei brought Xue Ying along to a nine-story pagoda.

"This is the Soaring Cloud Pagoda." Crimson Rock pointed to the nine-story pagoda in front of him. "If a Transcendent enters it, they will undergo Transcendent-level battles, while Deities would face Deity-level battles! Pass the first six floors, and you’ll attain the second qualification necessary to become an inner disciple."

"Once you complete both the Path of Reflection and the Soaring Cloud Pagoda to the ascertained stipulation—passing the first section of the Path of Reflection, and the sixth floor of the Soaring Cloud Pagoda—you will have fulfilled the requirements of becoming an inner disciple." Crimson Rock looked toward Xue Ying. "These are the conditions fixed by the sacred master, and no one may change them."

Xue Ying nodded. "I understand."

The Path of Reflection and the Soaring Cloud Pagoda?

"These two trials requirements are very difficult to meet, and your current comprehension of the realms is still very much lacking." Crimson Rock shook his head. "Wait some time before you attempt them. By this point, you should already be quite well aware that you have to cultivate bitterly and try your best to become an inner disciple before the war erupts."

"Mn." Xue Ying nodded. He had already become an honorary disciple and was essentially a strand of hope for the Xia Clan. However, he had to become even stronger!

Crimson Rock pointed to the empty space before him, where a few dense words suddenly appeared.

Xue Ying could not help but reveal a joyful look at the sight of those words.

"If you are still an honorary disciple by the time the war erupts, you should follow this plan," Crimson Rock began. "First, take the 100,000 Deity crystals reward and use them to exchange for more treasures."

"What?" Xue Ying frowned. "Of those 100,000 Deity crystals, I should use 30,000 of them to purchase a huge amount of Deity corpses?"

"They are for the use of your Blood Creeping Flower."

Crimson Rock explained, "The Blood Creeping Flower is a plant organism. It has a great amount of life force and is very large in size. It is quite suitable to be a weapon for war! It would be too slow to simply let it absorb World Energy, while giving it Deity crystals to absorb would be too extravagant. Thus, giving it Deity corpses is the best option in-between. The corpses of Deities are filled with a generous amount of energy, and they’re cheaper than simply using Deity crystals. With 30,000 Deity crystals, you can purchase enough corpses to let the Blood Creeping Flower evolve to the late stage Deity realm! However, I estimate that it would take it 10 years to reach the middle stage, and only after 30 years will it finally reach the late stage. Even if the Blood Creeping Flower manages to only reach the middle stage of the Deity realm, it is still different from ordinary Deities. Its huge body can spout countless vines which can cover a region of 5,000 kilometers, and it is significantly harder to kill than a late stage Deity ."

Xue Ying nodded. Plant organisms had innately strong life force.

"You should hurry up and send the Blood Creeping Flower back to the Xia Clan world," Crimson Rock continued. "You know the plant isn’t a native of the Xia Clan world, and only by becoming a Deity within it will it not be immediately forced out."

"But if I send the Blood Creeping Flower back now, won’t everyone likely find out about it once it becomes a Deity and creates a huge disturbance?" Xue Ying frowned.

"It’ll be even better if they find out," Xi Wei delightedly said. "If the Sorcerer God and the Great Demonic God hesitate and delay the battle by ten thousand years, that will only leave you, brat, with more time to cultivate. After cultivating within Crimson Rock Mountain for that much time, who knows, you might even refine the World Heart of the Xia Clan world."

Xue Ying frowned. "From what you guys previously said, and with how well the Sorcerer God and the Great Demonic God have prepared, it’s quite unlikely that they would delay the war because of the emergence of a Deity."

"Even if they choose not to delay, they would still want to get a clear situation of what the situation of the Xia Clan is, and, more importantly, whether you died or not. All you have to do is stay within Crimson Rock Mountain. Don’t take even a step outside. Do that, and it would be incredibly hard for them to find out about your situation! They might try to go through the Temporal Temple, but even the Temporal Temple can’t see through Crimson Rock Mountain. They may only learn about you through the Blood Creeping Flower. That would be very troublesome for the Temporal Temple, so the price anyone would have to pay would be exorbitant. They would have to incur a huge loss of Deity crystals should they want to buy the intelligence—at the very least, more than a million crystals! If they choose not to pay that price, they won’t be able to find out any insider information, and that would be an even greater advantage for you."

Xue Ying could not help but nod lightly.

"But if I do not return to the Xia Clan world," Xue Ying began, "how will I be able to communicate with the Xia Clan?"

"Crimson Rock Mountain is considered an independent world, and it is extremely close to the Xia Clan world. Simply using a communication treasure would suffice for you to be able to communicate outside," Crimson Rock said. "It doesn’t cost much; just a hundred Deity crystals! I’ll add in some materials from Crimson Rock Mountain. This sort of material can easily isolate the object from all Laws, so unless some powerful existence from the Deity world personally acts, not even the Temporal Temple could see through the resulting treasure."

Xue Ying immediately thought of a certain material; the sack left behind by Ancestor Black Wind could also easily isolate all Laws from probing it.

"You can transmit messages and interact with the Xia Clan at any time, but neither you nor your Qi Avatar should return. If you follow that rule, the Temporal Temple will not be able to see whether you left Crimson Rock Mountain even if they reverse time! For them to ascertain whether you’re alive or dead, they would then have to go through the Blood Creeping Flower, and the Blood Creeping Flower would have already stepped into the Deity realm by that point. To undergo an investigation on a Deity realm plant organism is very difficult, so the Temporal Temple will demand a huge price should the Sorcerer God and the Great Demonic God ask for such information." Crimson Rock smiled. Both he and Xi Wei knew many things and naturally understood the procedures. They were thus able to make use of fewer resources to greater effect.

Xue Ying carefully considered the plan. He found no issues with it either.

Xue Ying arranged everything that same day.

"Master." The Blood Creeping Flower had transformed into a red-skinned girl covered with green leaves and red flowers.

"Xue Man, be wary when you go out. Go first to my hometown, Water Rites Town’s Snowrock Castle, and find Jing Qiu.," Xue Ying ordered.

"Yes." The Blood Creeping Flower was really obedient.

"Alright. Go now, lass. Go into the Xia Clan world and grow." With those words, Crimson Rock waved his hand. Xi Wei’s glance betrayed her complex feelings. Having never left the Crimson Rock Mountain for a very long time, she couldn’t help but feel some envy.

Hu, the Blood Creeping Flower disappeared, leaving Crimson Rock Mountain for the Xia Clan world.

...

Back in the Xia Clan world, Jin Qiu currently lived within the Snowrock Castle of Water Rites Town in the Tranquil Sun Province of the Azure River County. She believed that, the moment her husband returned, he would certainly rush straight to the Snowrock Castle.

"Four years have passed…"

Jing Qiu held onto the railings, looking out at the snow-covered Snowrock mountain. She could feel a great weight pressing on her heart. The records wrote that getting through the Sky-Reaching Vine would take three years at most .

A feeling of unease flooded her heart. Four years had already passed, and he had yet to return. She did not dare believe, and neither would she be willing to accept, that something might have happened to him.

He’ll come back. He must, Jing Qiu prayed to herself.