Chapter 179: The Orthodoxy of Cultivation

Li Qingqiu and the other two stopped and started along the way, only flying on their swords as the ten-day deadline approached. Finally, on the evening of the tenth day, they finally returned to Qingxiao Mountain.

Shen Yue’s face was slightly flushed, while Mo Jihong was panting heavily. Using his Origin Qi for such a long period of sword flight was truly a great test for him.

After returning, Li Qingqiu had Yuan Qi ring the bell.

The bell in the Lingxiao Courtyard was newly installed to facilitate the rapid summoning of the various Hall Masters.

To discuss matters at Xuanxin Hall, the minimum status required was a Hall Elder, but for discussions at Lingxiao Courtyard, only Hall Masters could participate.

As night fell, the Hall Masters entered the courtyard one by one. Seeing that Li Qingqiu and Shen Yue were safe and sound, they all breathed a sigh of relief.

“Did those demon woods really come from the same demon?”

Yang Jueding sat opposite Li Qingqiu and asked curiously.

Li Qingqiu was busy dealing with Li Dongyue and Li Sijin, so he replied casually, “Once everyone has arrived, we will answer everything together.”

Yang Jueding nodded. As long as Li Qingqiu was back, it was a good thing.

To be honest, during the days Li Qingqiu was away, he really felt somewhat flustered. Even if the sect hadn’t fallen into chaos, his heart wasn’t at ease.

He didn’t know when it started, but he had also begun to rely on this kid.

During the wait, Yang Jueding noticed that Shen Yue’s aura was somewhat unstable, so he asked with concern, “Senior Shen, are you injured?”

Shen Yue glanced at him and said, “The Sect Leader dealt with that tree demon. I merely held off thousands of the Qi Clan’s martial artists alone. How could I be injured?”

“Thousands? For real?”

Yang Jueding’s eyes widened as he exclaimed. Li Dongyue, Li Sijin, and Chai Yunshang in the corner all turned their gazes toward Shen Yue.

Shen Yue remained expressionless, stroking his beard without further explanation, hiding his merit and fame deeply.

Li Qingqiu was amused. This old fellow really knew how to put on an act!

Waiting until everyone had arrived, Li Qingqiu finally began to recount the trip to Cangzhou. He didn’t say much about the combat details, but he described the immense size of the Ancient God.

Hearing that Li Qingqiu had torn apart an Ancient God as large as a mountain, everyone’s gaze toward him became strange.

True Man Qingxiao couldn’t help but ask, “Could it be that the Nourishing Origin Realm has dozens of layers?”

He voiced the thoughts of Jiang Zhaoxia and Xu Ning. They were both at the Nourishing Origin Realm Eighth Layer, yet they still couldn’t imagine what Realm Li Qingqiu was at now.

“The Nourishing Origin Realm only has nine layers, don’t overthink it,” Li Qingqiu shook his head and laughed.

He didn’t give the others a chance to press further and immediately said, “The Ancient God has been eradicated, and the Qi Clan has been leveled. Although there are still members of the Qi Clan outside, and even some lords, as long as the Ancient God is destroyed, the Qi Clan poses no threat to us. The Qingxiao Sect has completely survived this ordeal.”

Upon hearing this, smiles appeared on everyone’s faces.

The threat of the tree demon had been far too great; even Xu Ning had been seriously injured, casting a shadow over the entire Qingxiao Sect.

“From tomorrow, the sect will operate normally and no longer stop Disciples from going down the mountain. Hall Master Zhang, Hall Master Zhu, utilize your connections and continue to investigate the Lingtian Sect. This will be a long-term mission until the Lingtian Sect is completely uprooted.”

Li Qingqiu instructed. Hearing this, Zhang Yuchun and Zhu Yan both nodded.

Afterward, Li Qingqiu ordered Zhang Yuchun to write down the account of the Cangzhou trip tomorrow and announce it to all the Disciples. On one hand, it was to put the Disciples’ minds at ease, and on the other, it was to boost morale.

“Next, the sect’s construction tasks will focus on the Tiangong Hall. I need the Tiangong Hall to concentrate on Formations and Magical Artifacts. I permit you to recruit another hundred people specifically to study the Basic Text Record of Formations and Magical Artifacts. Every Disciple can learn the Basic Text Record of Formations. Additionally, I will establish an extra reward system to encourage the creativity of the Tiangong Hall Disciples. The demon wood will also belong to the Tiangong Hall.”

Li Qingqiu spoke seriously to Zhu Yan. As soon as these words were spoken, the expressions of the other Hall Masters changed slightly; they had also had their eyes on the demon wood.

That demon wood could block an attack from the Nourishing Origin Realm Eighth Layer. Whether used for making weapons or armor, it was of high value. As a result, before they could even ask, Li Qingqiu had directly assigned it to the Tiangong Hall.

Zhu Yan was naturally pleasantly surprised and hurriedly thanked Li Qingqiu.

Li Qingqiu scanned the crowd and said, “I know what you are thinking. But rather than carving it into weapons, it is better to let the Tiangong Hall forge it into Magical Artifacts. You must understand one thing: the creations of the Tiangong Hall will eventually flow into every hall and benefit the entire sect.”

The Hall Masters felt this made sense and quickly explained that they were in agreement.

Li Qingqiu didn’t dwell on their petty thoughts and immediately spoke of other development plans.

After the end of the year, the Demon Taming Hall will be formally established, and Li Qingqiu will personally teach his insights on taming demons. At the same time, the Source Iron Blessed Land will be opened to the Disciples. He prepared to build a small city around the port.

Li Qingqiu had many plans, and everyone memorized them firmly. They didn’t find it troublesome; instead, they felt high-spirited.

Developing the sect felt very grounding to them. They had originally worried that after Li Qingqiu destroyed the Qi Clan, his Heart-Nature would swell with pride. Thinking about it now, they had worried too much.

Unknowingly, the Hall Masters also began to look forward to the future Li Qingqiu described, anticipating the day the Qingxiao Sect would become a true cultivation sect.

As the moon set and the sun rose, early the next morning, the Spirit Control Hall Disciples went to the various courtyards on the two peaks to post notices exposing the crimes of the Qi Clan and the Ancient God.

The news quickly spread throughout the Qingxiao Sect, leading all the Disciples to curse the Qi Clan while marveling at the power of the Sect Leader and the Sword God.

Li Qingqiu had Zhang Yuchun specifically highlight Shen Yue’s achievements, though in the end, he still criticized Shen Yue, saying he had failed to fully carry out the sect’s orders.

Even so, Shen Yue gained a lot of fame. He was very satisfied after reading the notice himself; as for the sect’s criticism, he didn’t mind it.

After the Qingxiao Sect’s crisis was resolved, a large number of Disciples began going down the mountain to perform missions. Some Disciples wanted to go to the Martial Forest to publicize the Sect Leader’s achievements, fearing the world wouldn’t know about it.

Inside the Immortal Cave.

Li Qingqiu sat on the stone bed, holding the soul refining banner. He was reading the Ancient God’s memories.

The Ancient God had lived for over a thousand years, and its memories were incredibly vast, making it difficult for Li Qingqiu to fully master them in a short time.

Li Qingqiu withdrew his Spiritual Consciousness and breathed a sigh of relief.

From the time the Qi Clan first contacted the Ancient God, no more powerful forces were involved.

Years ago, the Qi Clan’s fortunes had declined, and the Ancient God was trapped in the deep mountains; the two parties had been helping each other.

Seeing Li Qingqiu open his eyes, Nangong E approached and asked, “Master, that tree demon couldn’t possibly have more tricks, right?”

That day, after Li Qingqiu killed the Ancient God, the ground shook. Nangong E and Lin Chuan had sneaked in for a low-profile investigation and found many tunnels underground, as if something massive had burrowed through. They suspected it was the work of the Ancient God’s root system.

After more than half a day of investigation, they discovered that several of the Ancient God’s roots had indeed broken off and vanished.

“It indeed does, but there’s no need to worry. It’s equivalent to giving birth to offspring; it won’t use them to be reborn. Furthermore, for those roots to grow to the scale and strength of the Ancient God, they would have to wait a thousand years,” Li Qingqiu replied.

This was the reason why the Ancient God could not be completely exterminated; once dead, its roots would automatically detach and burrow deep into the ground.

Li Qingqiu had learned this from the Ancient God’s memories; it was something even the Ancient God could not control.

It was worth mentioning that the reason the Ancient God’s soul took a human form was that it was very close to the next major Realm. It was essentially at the Ninth Layer of the Nourishing Origin Realm Perfection, only a step away from the Spiritual Consciousness Realm.

But at that single step, it had been stagnant for many years.

Li Qingqiu guessed that the reason it couldn’t break through was the lack of a Breakthrough method.

He was different; the Taiqing Hunyuan Scripture recorded the method for Breakthrough, it just required an opportunity.

Hearing Li Qingqiu say this, Nangong E was completely at ease.

Chu Jing popped up and said, “Master, can you create a Spell that allows me to become one of your combat methods as well, just like how Shen Yue uses the sword soul?”

As a sword soul, he was actually unable to participate in the battle. Thinking back on it, he felt a bit frustrated.

Li Qingqiu glanced at him and said, “Cultivate first. I will satisfy you in the future.”

“Thank you, Master!” Chu Jing hurriedly bowed in thanks.

Nangong E and Lin Chuan also floated over, requesting Li Qingqiu for the same. They also wanted to share more combat responsibilities. He could only agree to all of them, saying he would think about creating suitable Spells later… A thousand-year tree demon appeared in the Qi Clan, and the Qingxiao Sect Leader went north to slay the demon!

This news shocked Cangzhou and then spread toward Weizhou Prefecture, Beiliang Prefecture, and Zhongtian Prefecture. Because the news involved the Qi Clan and Li Qingqiu, it sparked intense curiosity in those who heard it. Passed by word of mouth, it formed a wildfire-like momentum, spreading across the entire world.

It was now the end of the year.

Han Lang and other Sword Sect Disciples returned with Zhou Ya. Facing Li Qingqiu, Zhou Ya knelt directly and tearfully recounted his actions.

Hearing that what Zhou Ya had passed on was not the Hunyuan Scripture but a self-created Cultivation Technique, Li Qingqiu’s expression softened.

No wonder the prompt said this matter had profound significance for the sect; the Qingxiao Sect had essentially played the role of the Human Dao Ancestor Yang Xuan.

Li Qingqiu was also seriously considering this matter.

He felt that this kind of thing could not be prevented. One day, other cultivation sects and families would rise. It would be difficult for them to threaten the status of the Qingxiao Sect.

Even if it couldn’t be stopped, Li Qingqiu hoped to delay the pace of this trend as much as possible.

“Considering your motives were good, the death penalty is waived, but you cannot escape punishment. For the next three years, you are demoted to a Utility Disciple and are not allowed to leave the sect,” Li Qingqiu said, staring at Zhou Ya.

Hearing this, Zhou Ya was instantly overjoyed and hurriedly thanked Li Qingqiu.

After thanking him, Zhou Ya asked cautiously, “Then what about my Disciples outside?”

Li Qingqiu glared at him and said crossly, “Do you think I am a bloodthirsty person who must exterminate them all?”

Zhou Ya breathed a sigh of relief, feeling very moved. He thanked Li Qingqiu once again on behalf of his Disciples.

Standing to the side, Han Lang also felt admiration for Li Qingqiu. If he were the Sect Leader, he felt he might not be so magnanimous.

“I will have someone write this matter down and post it in every courtyard to warn the Disciples. Next, you might face some criticism, so be mentally prepared.”

Li Qingqiu stared at Zhou Ya and continued. His reason for doing this was twofold: one was as a warning, and the other was to plant a seed. If the Qingxia Sect really developed in the future, it would allow the Disciples to look back on this matter and know that the Qingxia Sect’s cultivation method originated from the Qingxiao Sect.

No matter how the world developed in the future, the Qingxiao Sect must be the orthodoxy of the path of cultivation!

Any sect or Family in the world is forbidden from practicing the Hunyuan Scripture. Once discovered, they will be exterminated.

Of course, it would be even better if the Qingxiao Sect could be the only cultivation sect in the Nine Provinces.