Longevity starts with choosing Hextech enhancement

Chapter 475 Geniuses Always Face the Troubles of Being Different
Coincidentally, it happened less than 15 minutes after Xiao Chen entered the Wanxian Islands.

A figure in the distance came forward to greet them.

The visitor was none other than Hengyi Zhenjun, who greeted him with a smile and clasped his hands in greeting.

After exchanging several polite and tactful remarks, she then subtly inquired about Xiao Chen's purpose in coming.

There was nothing we could do; the Jingkonghai incident happened too suddenly.

So much so that after the news spread, everyone was quite uneasy.

After learning that Xiao Chen was merely settling old scores and that he also had a minor conflict with the Jin family of Wanxian Island.

Hengyi Zhenjun breathed a sigh of relief and immediately said, "There's no need for Fellow Daoist Xiao to handle such a trivial matter personally."

"Just let me know, and I'll have my staff handle it."

For him, the biggest worry is the possibility of a situation where communication becomes completely impossible.

As long as Xiao Chen can give a plausible reason on the surface, everything is negotiable.

Moreover, in the cultivation world, revenge is considered a matter of course and a matter of course.

"Forget it, no need to make a fuss, I can do it myself."

Xiao Chen waved his hand, rejecting the suggestion: "It's just a quick thing, and it doesn't take much effort."

Hengyi Zhenjun immediately chimed in, "Look at my loose tongue, always spouting nonsense and coming up with all sorts of outlandish ideas."

"Thinking about it carefully, it makes sense. It's definitely more satisfying and cathartic to take revenge personally."

"Then I won't take up any more of your time, fellow Daoist."

"The Jin family is in that direction, about 12,000 li away."

As he spoke, he also gave directions.

Just as Xiao Chen said, dealing with the Jin family was not difficult at all.

In less than 15 minutes, the warehouse was completely cleaned.

Xiao Chen counted the spirit stones and was immediately surprised: "A Golden Core family can actually save up 2.33 million spirit stones. They must have done a lot of bad things."

Thinking back to the Jin family cultivators' tacit act of repaying kindness with enmity, they must have done similar things many times before.

Therefore, it seems that after this round of liquidation...

Not only has Xiao Chen settled old grudges from previous years, but the environment of the entire Storm Sea should also improve considerably in a short period of time.

After all, with so many villains gone, even if new villains emerge in the future, there will at least be a relatively stable period of peace and stability.

In fact, this is exactly the case.

After Hengyi Zhenjun revealed the main reason why Xiao Chen took action, for the next few years, large and small forces and cultivation families began to strictly restrain their disciples.

This has greatly improved the living environment for the independent cultivators in the Inner Sea compared to before.

After leaving the Wanxian Islands, Xiao Chen headed straight for the Dragon Slaying Sea to attend the banquet.

The journey was smooth sailing, without any obstacles encountered.

The Divine Sword Pavilion has also made full preparations.

Since there was plenty of time, Lord Lieque simply cleared out the entire side peak and demolished and rebuilt all the pavilions and towers on it.

He diligently guided his disciples who specialized in building construction.

They have put their heart and soul into creating a warm and bright academy, where fire elemental energy flows, making it very suitable for fire-type cultivators to live in.

They even used an array to plan the flow of spiritual energy, causing the fire spiritual energy on this side peak to be highly concentrated, condensing into a faint red mist in the sky directly above.

It looks increasingly ethereal and otherworldly, like a paradise on earth.

"Ah... Fellow Daoist Lieque, you are too kind."

Xiao Chen was taken aback at first glance, but fortunately he immediately guessed the other party's intention.

It is estimated that he witnessed the perfected Crimson Sky Mountain-Splitting Palm at the Heavenly Sound Sect, which led him to subconsciously regard himself as a fire spirit root cultivator.

This isn't a big problem for him.

While others may have specific requirements for their cultivation environment, Xiao Chen is different. He uses the "Spirit Devouring and Essence Consolidation Technique" to condense his true essence, which costs him spirit stones.

Therefore, it has no effect regardless of the external spiritual environment.

"Not at all, not at all. Zhanlong Sea is located near the outer edge, so the overall conditions are relatively simple. I hope Fellow Daoist Xiao doesn't mind."

Upon hearing this, True Lord Lieque first responded with a smile, then changed the subject: "Most of my disciples are dull-witted; I need to keep an eye on them first."

"Please wait in the courtyard for a few hours, and we will talk again at the banquet."

After saying that, he got up to take his leave, seemingly to prepare for the promised spirit fish feast.

However, not long after Lieque Zhenjun left, Xiao Chen had just entered the courtyard to tour it and hadn't even had a chance to go inside and sit down.

Then, the sound of footsteps could be heard from outside.

Immediately afterwards, a young man wearing a tall mountain-shaped hat and a red robe with auspicious cloud patterns arrived at the gate of the Taoist temple.

"Bang bang bang!"

He first raised his hand and knocked on the already open door, then bowed to Xiao Chen, who turned around to look.

He then introduced himself in a leisurely manner: "My name is Luo Qihui, a contemporary practitioner of Qinghe Temple."

"I have come today on the orders of my sect to pay my respects to the True Lord of Burning Demons."

As he spoke, he deliberately released his mid-stage Nascent Soul cultivation aura to demonstrate his strength, while bowing slightly to show his respect.

"Oh~?"

Xiao Chen was initially surprised, then returned the greeting with a cupped hand: "So it's Fellow Daoist Luo in person. I've long admired your sect."

"Fellow Daoist, please don't stand on ceremony, please come in quickly."

"I've heard so much about you" is just a figure of speech, of course.

In fact, it was only not long ago that Xiao Chen learned from the Yin Corpse Sect's Scripture Pavilion that there were several relatively active hidden sects within the Storm Sea.

For example, the Flame-Playing Sect, and then there's the Qinghe Temple, which took the initiative to come to us.

It is said that there are also some rather secluded schools such as the Yu Chen School and Wen Ji Academy.

However, the Yin Corpse Sect knew very little about these reclusive sects; they were almost limited to simply knowing that such a thing existed.

On the contrary, the Tianyin Sect's Scripture Pavilion contained records of relevant information they had obtained from Baicao City and the Demon-Slaying Sword Sect.

It was mentioned that Qinghe Temple has a long history, but it rarely holds activities on weekdays.

They are basically only active for a year or two every hundred years or so.

The main purpose is to acquire some basic resources from the outside world to supplement our supplies, and incidentally, to select a few 'destined' cultivators in the mortal realm to take back with us.

Most of the time, they are children with good natural talent.

Occasionally, they will select rogue cultivators who demonstrate good character during the trials.

As a result, several folk tales about mysterious immortals and encounters with immortals have been left in some places.

However, the fact that they sent people into the mortal world less than a century ago to specifically search for Xiao Chen is clearly different from their usual approach.

I don't know what their purpose was.

Because there was a brazier in the very center of this Taoist temple, and a viewing pavilion was built around it.

So Xiao Chen pointed directly to the stone bench in the pavilion and led the other person to sit down.

"I had heard before I came that you are a young and promising person."

Luo Qihui spoke up first: "Who would have thought that you would look even younger than the rumors suggest, when I see it with my own eyes today?"

"Indeed, heroes have emerged from among the young since ancient times; the ancients were right."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Chen immediately waved his hand and said, "Fellow Daoist Luo is too kind. I was just lucky and managed to gain some insights during my seclusion."

The two chatted casually for two rounds.

I've gotten a little familiar with it.

Luo Qihui finally changed the subject and began to state his purpose: "To be honest, I have come here today to visit you, fellow Daoist, to discuss other important matters."

"This is a long story, mainly involving some past events."

"In addition, I am not good with words, so I may be a bit long-winded when I speak. Please forgive me, fellow Daoist."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Chen smiled and nodded slightly, indicating that the other party should speak freely.

So Luo Qihui started by talking about the establishment of Qinghe Temple and briefly described some important changes that followed.

Although it was clear that he was trying to keep it brief.

However, nearly 500,000 years have passed since Qinghe Temple was first established.

Therefore, no matter how concise it is, it still sounds somewhat bloated and unbearable.

After listening to the whole thing, Xiao Chen roughly understood two things.

The first thing is that they have been hiding for a very long time since Qinghe Temple chose to withdraw from the world more than 300,000 years ago.

Over time, they accumulated some cultivation resources.

In the past two years, many Golden Core cultivators have emerged in the sect, and the small island where they originally lived has become quite crowded.

Therefore, they began to rethink whether it was possible to re-engage with the world.

Against this backdrop, they wanted to inquire about Xiao Chen's views on the future situation of the Sea of ​​No Light and the Cloud Pool Sea.

The second thing is that Qinghe Temple pays close attention to changes in the external situation and to outstanding figures in the world.

At the same time, although they have not yet fully decided whether to come out into the world, they are already preparing to establish a base in the outside world.

If Xiao Chen is willing, he can come here and register as an honorary elder, without having to do any work.

All related benefits are negotiable and can be paid according to the highest standards.

If there are special circumstances requiring his help, we will consult with him and offer him a fair additional compensation.

Ultimately, whether or not to agree to help is entirely up to Xiao Chen himself.

You can refuse if you don't want to, and you don't need a reason.

It can be said that they offered very favorable terms.

Of course, these two things can also be simply understood as one sentence.

That means Qinghe Temple is already preparing to emerge and has begun recruiting soldiers and horses and absorbing guest elders ahead of time.

Of course, the reality is definitely dozens of times more complicated than this, but that's the general idea.

"Um... I think it's great that your organization has such ideas."

Xiao Chen wasn't particularly interested in these things, nor did he really want to be a guest advisor: "However, I don't really know much about these things, so I probably can't offer any useful advice."

"As for the honorary elder, I'm not considering that for now."

"The main issue is the time commitment, and I also don't have much extra energy."

Simply put, he maintains a neutral stance.

They will neither support the emergence of Qinghe Temple nor stand up to oppose it.

Upon hearing this, Luo Qihui breathed a huge sigh of relief.

Before he came here, his biggest worry was that Xiao Chen and the forces behind him would openly oppose him.

If they already have plans for the Sea of ​​No Light and the Sea of ​​Cloud Pool.

The entire plan of Qinghe Temple would be disrupted, and they might even be forced to seek a more suitable opportunity.

There was no other way; we couldn't very well fight Xiao Chen to snatch the spiritual vein.

Let's not even talk about how many True Lords are standing behind him.

He couldn't possibly handle it all by himself. Hearing Xiao Chen's neutral opinion on the matter of Qinghe Temple's emergence into the world, Luo Qihui finally put aside his worries and became even more determined to emerge into the world.

Since such a golden opportunity has presented itself, we must seize it.

There are only so many fourth-tier spiritual veins in the Eastern Region. If you miss this opportunity, who knows how long you'll have to wait?

Of course, Luo Qihui hadn't forgotten his second purpose and continued to enthusiastically promote the idea: "Fellow Daoist Xiao may have some misunderstanding about our honorary elder."

"Actually, this matter is not busy at all, and it will not take up your time or energy."

"To put it bluntly, I just want to borrow your name as a protective charm to deter potential villains."

"Apart from the occasional need for fellow Daoists to make an appearance and save face."

"In reality, there will be no more trivial matters to bother you, and they will definitely not affect your cultivation."

Is it so direct?
Xiao Chen was slightly surprised by his straightforwardness, but he still declined the suggestion: "Well, let me think about it slowly."

"It might not be appropriate to give you a direct answer right now."

Although, in Luo Qihui's words, this honorary elder position sounded like a free lunch.

I can totally agree to it and get a free cultivation resource.

However, Xiao Chen knew that there's no such thing as a free lunch.

If I agree to this, who knows what trouble I might encounter in the future.

It wasn't that he was worried about getting into trouble, but simply that he didn't want to expend too much energy and also felt it wasn't worth it.

First of all, Xiao Chen actually has quite a few cultivation resources at his disposal.

Besides, how much salary can an honorary elder who doesn't do any work receive?

He didn't even need to ask the price to know that it wouldn't be much.

For him, it's not that it's dispensable, but it's certainly insignificant.

Secondly, Xiao Chen's situation is completely different from that of ordinary cultivators.

Therefore, he has a problem that no one else has.

You should know that, given his current condition, it won't be long before he's able to break through to the late Nascent Soul stage.

Although he didn't know how long it would take to break through to the Nascent Soul stage, he was very confident in himself and believed that he would succeed sooner or later.

Then comes the problem.

If Xiao Chen agrees to become an honorary elder of Qinghe Temple, then what level of strength should be used to determine his salary?

It should be the current mid-stage of the Nascent Soul realm?

Or is he likely to break through to the late Nascent Soul stage within two years?
Or perhaps a future Nascent Soul Great Perfection cultivator or even a Divine Transformation Venerable?
If the price is too low, then Xiao Chen will be at a loss.

But if the price is too high, can Qinghe Temple accept the price for future cultivation?

I'm afraid that's impossible.

Just kidding, who knows when you'll actually break through? There's no such logic to it.

For ordinary cultivators, they don't need to worry about this issue.

Because it often takes decades or even centuries for ordinary cultivators to experience a change in strength, and only then will they be involved in this situation.

But Xiao Chen is different.

He might break through in less than two years, and even after breaking through, he might continue to break through in less than two years.

Although it sounds like a fantasy to outsiders, he had a pretty good idea of ​​what was going on.

Sigh, his rapid breakthroughs have brought him extra trouble!
Xiao Chen sighed inwardly. Geniuses always have to face the troubles of being different from others. This is probably what they call being envied by the heavens.

"I understand, I was too hasty in asking."

Luo Qihui immediately smiled and agreed, "This kind of thing definitely needs to be decided after careful consideration."

"However, I can state my position in advance."

"Qinghe Temple always welcomes fellow Daoists. We can talk anytime you wish to come."

He naturally understood the refusal in Xiao Chen's words.

But after a brief period of disappointment, he came to terms with it.

After all, from the very beginning, Luo Qihui didn't expect to achieve both of his goals just by coming to meet him once.

He was already quite satisfied to have obtained the important information that Xiao Chen maintained a neutral stance through today's conversation.

As for winning over the other party and gaining more support, that can be left for next time.

As the saying goes, you can't eat hot tofu in a hurry.

Pushing too hard might only backfire.

Therefore, Luo Qihui only said a few general polite words afterward.

Then he took the initiative to get up and say goodbye: "Today I really hit it off with Fellow Daoist Xiao. I wish I could stay and talk all night long."

"However, I have important business to attend to this trip, so it is really inconvenient for me to stay any longer."

"If there is another opportunity next time, I will come to pay my respects to Fellow Daoist Xiao again."

Xiao Chen didn't try to stop him, and smiled as he saw him off.

Then, less than fifteen minutes later...

True Lord Lieque appeared just in time and immediately apologized: "Fellow Daoist Xiao, I am truly sorry."

"The main reason is that my senior uncle had a past relationship with Qinghe Temple, and since the other party came specifically to ask for a favor in person, I really couldn't refuse, so I let him into the temple."

"If his words or actions have offended you, I apologize in advance."

"In addition, this is a ten-thousand-year-old red ginseng that he specially sent to me to pay respects to my fellow Daoist."

"I have no right to accept this. Please accept it as an apology."

And this thing?

Xiao Chen was a little surprised that Luo Qi Hui would actually be willing to take out a fourth-tier spiritual item just to see him.

It should be noted that red ginseng that is over 5,000 years old is already considered a mid-grade fourth-order spiritual item.

This ancient red salvia miltiorrhiza is only worth more, at least equivalent to three or four ordinary 5,000-year-old salvia miltiorrhiza plants.

However, on the other hand, this is indeed a strength of some reclusive Taoist traditions.

If Xiao Chen wasn't mistaken, there should be a dedicated spiritual herb garden on the secluded island of Qinghe Temple, where a batch of fourth-tier spiritual herbs were specially planted.

The purpose is to have something presentable to use as a stepping stone when cultivating relationships with outsiders in the future.

These aged medicinal herbs are especially favored by high-level alchemists.

The only pity is that Xiao Chen still has a lot of room for improvement in alchemy.

Moreover, now that he has the "Spirit Devouring and Essence Devouring Technique," he has little time to study alchemy.

Unless we can acquire Hextech items that will help us learn the arts, we'll probably have to keep pushing it.

"Actually, we had a fairly pleasant chat."

Xiao Chen waved his hand: "So there's no need for apologies or anything like that, it's not that serious."

"As long as there are no more sudden 'attacks' like this, it's fine."

Ok?
What's that expression on your face?
Xiao Chen noticed that after he finished speaking...

Lieque Zhenjun's expression was somewhat strange, as if his embarrassment was mixed with a forced smile.

No, there are other people?

Xiao Chen originally thought this was a feast of spirit fish, the key being the Dragon Blood Red Cod King, and that he was just there to eat fish.

But judging from this situation, he might actually be the key.

Or rather, people seem to pay more attention to him as a person than to the Dragonblood Red Cod King.

Hmm, it's not a big problem!
Xiao Chen casually put away the ancient red ginseng: "Tell me honestly, who else came?"

"And is this the only medicinal herb?"

Since things have come to this point, I should definitely collect a meeting fee.

"Fellow Daoist Xiao truly has keen insight!"

Lieque Zhenjun immediately smiled and took out another Blazing Rock Lotus Crystal: "Actually, Fellow Daoist Xiang from the Flame-Playing Sect has also come and wants to meet you at the banquet."

"This is a fire-type spiritual item that he brought specially."

"However, this was originally intended to be given to you, fellow Daoist. It should have been given out in separate portions. It's not that I intentionally hid it from you."

The value of Chiyan Lianjing and Wannian Hongdanshen is basically the same.

Whether it was tacit understanding, coincidence, or something they had discussed beforehand, it's hard to say.

But none of that mattered anymore. Since they were willing to give it, Xiao Chen simply accepted it.

Who would complain about an extra Tier 4 spirit item?

Anyway, he doesn't mind.

"Okay, when will the banquet begin?"

Now that he had accepted the gifts, Xiao Chen immediately asked about the time to meet.

"The other dishes and wine have been prepared and are located in the center of the sect's main hall."

Lord Lieque immediately said, "Only the Dragon Blood Red Cod King is taking a bit longer to prepare; I estimate it will take about fifteen minutes."

"We can go there now, or we can go later."

"We will follow your opinion."

Realizing that Xiao Chen was not angry, True Lord Lieque was overjoyed.

Despite his apparent busy work, he ended up not getting a single spiritual item.

In fact, since he arranged this meeting, both Luo Qihui and Xiang Yiyang owe him a favor.

At the same time, sending out the spiritual object and ensuring that Xiao Chen is not angry is equivalent to making a profit without any cost.

Anyway, Lord Lieque was still content. He had already gained two favors for free, and it was the worst thing to be too greedy in life.

The two arrived together in the sect's main hall.

The spacious round table was already laden with 364 dishes, with only the main course in the center missing.

However, apart from Xiang Yiyang, who was already waiting in the hall, there were no maids or servants present.

This was probably to prevent the subsequent conversation from being accidentally leaked.

After all, rather than choosing to believe in their loyalty to the Divine Sword Pavilion, it's better to prevent them from becoming insiders in the first place, thus eliminating the possibility of spies leaking secrets to the outside world from the root.

"Fellow Daoist Xiao, it's been a long time!"

Hearing the noise, Xiang Yiyang had already stood up: "Six years have passed since we parted ways on Tianxing Island."

"But I will always remember the heroic figure you displayed when you unleashed the Soaring Palm."

"Especially the scene where he shattered the Taixu Cloud Light Barrier with his Golden Core cultivation, truly made me feel inferior and I can never forget it."

"I also often regret that I didn't get to meet fellow Daoists on the island and discuss fire techniques together."

"It is a pleasure to meet you again today, which has fulfilled my wish of the past few years."

Xiao Chen did it quite discreetly at the time. No outsiders knew about the mechanical grappling hook and thought he had shattered the Taixu Cloud Barrier with his Soaring Palm.

This is why the rumor spread that he was pursuing the path of enlightenment.

(End of this chapter)