Chapter 511 - 420: Sect Leader, Is It Worth It?
Chapter 511: Chapter 420: Sect Leader, Is It Worth It?
Jiang Qingyi looked quite angry after walking into the room.
Xiao Mo couldn’t help but give a wry smile as he looked at the tightly shut door.
In truth, Xiao Mo could understand where this Fairy Jiang was coming from.
He had spent nearly a year with this Fairy Jiang.
Although Fairy Jiang had a bad temper and a cold personality, she was a good person at heart. He could sense that deep down, she was very kind.
Perhaps, in Fairy Jiang’s eyes, for him to have such talent yet waste it in a place like this was truly an utter waste.
But it wasn’t easy for Xiao Mo to explain things to her.
"Fairy Jiang, the night is late. Please rest well."
Xiao Mo bowed toward the door, then turned and left the National Preceptor’s Mansion without lingering.
’Fool... What’s so great about this Imperial Palace anyway? Don’t tell me you’re really that excited about those two Princess Consorts?!’
Jiang Qingyi pressed her thin lips together as she watched Xiao Mo’s retreating figure.
Once the courtyard gates closed again, Jiang Qingyi finally came out of her room and sat back down in the courtyard.
She took out her Profound Frost Longsword and a whetstone, carefully polishing the blade’s edge.
The Profound Frost Longsword was merely an ordinary Fourth-Grade Magical Artifact.
The whetstone, however, was forged from Geng Gold Iron. It was incredibly rare and typically used to polish Immortal Soldiers.
Before long, a woman emerged from the darkness and walked before Jiang Qingyi.
The woman wore Palace Attire, overlaid with a light, silk shawl that faintly revealed her fair, delicate shoulders.
Her tube top wrapped around two pale, mountainous peaks, faintly revealing a deep, bottomless, snowy-white ravine.
She stepped forward and bowed gracefully. "Xia He, Hall Master of the Wanjian Sect’s Alchemy Hall, pays her respects to the Sect Leader."
"Mm," Jiang Qingyi nodded, casually setting up an Array to isolate them from the outside world. "I have a task for you."
"Please give your orders, Sect Leader!" Xia He said with a nod. "As long as it’s within my power, I will go through fire and water to accomplish it."
"No need for such exaggeration." Jiang Qingyi shook her head and tossed a Glazed Bottle from her sleeve.
Xia He caught it steadily. Her slender fingers held the Glazed Bottle, which contained a crimson liquid.
Even though the Glazed Bottle was a remarkable Magical Treasure that concealed the aura of its contents,
Xia He could still sense the vast Spiritual Power and incredibly domineering Sword Qi contained within the Essence Blood inside.
"Sect Leader, this is..." A hint of astonishment appeared in Xia He’s eyes as she immediately understood whose blood was in the bottle.
"You guessed correctly. It is my Essence Blood," Jiang Qingyi said in a calm tone. "I want you to use my Essence Blood to refine a certain elixir."
"May I ask what kind of Elixir the Sect Leader wishes to refine that requires the use of your precious Essence Blood?"
Xia He was deeply puzzled.
This was the Essence Blood of an Ascension Realm Sword Cultivator—and one with an Innate Sword Bone, no less!
Out in the world, this small bottle of Essence Blood would cause countless Cultivators to fight to the death over it.
Jiang Qingyi glanced at Xia He and slowly said, "I want you to refine the Heaven-Stealing Pill for me."
"..."
Xia He froze for a moment upon hearing Jiang Qingyi speak the three words, "Heaven-Stealing Pill."
As a Cultivator who had entered the Jade Realm through the path of Alchemy,
Xia He naturally knew what the Heaven-Stealing Pill was.
The so-called Heaven-Stealing Pill, as its name implied, was meant to steal heavenly secrets and deceive the Celestial Dao, thereby allowing one to do the impossible and attempt the forbidden.
"Sect Leader, the Heaven-Stealing Pill is no small matter. When I studied the art of elixirs under my master, he told me that for an elixir like the Heaven-Stealing Pill, which involves immense causality, one must understand the full story. Therefore, could the Sect Leader please tell me the purpose for refining this elixir?
Otherwise, even if I were to die by your sword, I would not dare to blindly refine it for you."
Xia He said solemnly.
Jiang Qingyi gave Xia He a cool look and said, "Why are you alchemists all like Daoists, always needing to ask about every little detail? So afraid of shouldering causality... I don’t know how you people even manage to cultivate."
"Please forgive me, Sect Leader," Xia He insisted.
"Fine. There’s no harm in telling you."
Jiang Qingyi took a sip of tea and spoke slowly.
"The current Sovereign of Zhou has good talent. Although he’s a bit stubborn, he is tolerable enough to look at.
However, he is unwilling to follow me to the Wanjian Sect.
And the reason I’m refining this elixir is simply to enable the current Sovereign of Zhou to cultivate."
"Allowing an Emperor to cultivate?" Xia He looked at Jiang Qingyi, wondering if she had misheard.
"That’s right."
Jiang Qingyi set down her teacup.
"In Ancient Times, it is said that the Sovereign of Great Qin issued three Holy Decrees and accomplished three things.
One of those was a rule forbidding Emperors from cultivating beyond the Foundation Establishment Realm.
But the rule, established by the Sovereign of Great Qin with his Immortal Realm power and the Mountain and River Fortune, is not without its limits.
Not to mention, the Great Qin kingdom was destroyed tens of thousands of years ago, so that Holy Decree is not so unbreakable anymore.
In my opinion,
if this Heaven-Stealing Pill is successfully refined, it shouldn’t be too difficult for an Emperor to cultivate."
"That may be so, but Sect Leader, let’s not even talk about how incredibly difficult the Heaven-Stealing Pill is to refine.
Even if I were to actually succeed in refining it and it could conceal a portion of the Celestial Dao,
the Heaven-Stealing Pill must be taken regularly, without stopping.
And each time it is refined, it will require your Essence Blood. This could affect your future cultivation.
Furthermore, the causality involved in helping someone deceive the Celestial Dao is hard to predict."
Xia He’s tone grew anxious. "Sect Leader, even if the Sovereign of Zhou’s talent has caught your eye, how could he possibly compare to a single strand of your hair? Is doing this truly worth it?"
Xia He truly didn’t understand what was so special about the Sovereign of Zhou. ’Is it really just because of his talent?’
’How could he move the Sect Leader to make such a decision?’
"If my cultivation could be affected by losing a little Essence Blood, then my Ascension Realm would be far too cheap.
Besides.
What if it is worth it?
And what if it’s not?
Whether it’s worth it or not is for me alone to decide."
Jiang Qingyi looked directly into Xia He’s eyes, her tone leaving no room for doubt.
"In a word: can you refine it or not?"
Xia He’s mouth opened slightly, as if to protest further, but seeing the look in her Sect Leader’s eyes, she knew that anything she said would be useless. "I understand. Please grant me three months, Sect Leader. I will do everything in my power to refine this elixir for you."
"Very good." Jiang Qingyi nodded. "If you need any Heavenly and Earthly Treasures, just find Qiu Ye. If Qiu Ye can’t provide them, then come to me. You may go."
"Yes, Sect Leader." Xia He bowed, sighing inwardly, and gradually vanished into the night.
"Is it worth it?"
In the silent courtyard, Jiang Qingyi lowered her head, gently stroking the body of the Profound Frost Sword.
"Back then, when you gave everything for my cultivation, did you ever stop to think whether it was worth it or not?"