Junior Sister must ascend this time!

After cleaning the tombstones of her predecessors, Yun Qing sat down cross-legged to cultivate.

However, after only two hours, fine beads of sweat appeared on her forehead. She could feel that the closer she got to the threshold of Foundation Establishment, the stronger her reactions became during cultivation.

At crucial moments, the metal and wood spiritual energies would lose their balance, rampaging through her body and making her meridians feel as if they were about to explode.

Yun Qing endured the pain for another half an hour before she finally stopped, gasping for breath.

This won't do; we still need to find a way to solve the problem of the metal and wood elements clashing with each other in our spiritual roots.

However, the immediate priority is to solve the problem of food. She hasn't reached the Foundation Establishment stage yet, and she's starving after a whole day of running around.

She took out eight large steamed buns from her storage bag and started munching on them.

She had borrowed these from the canteen in advance; to be precise, she had borrowed five hundred. After eating these eight, she regretted it, realizing she hadn't brought enough!

At her current rate of food intake, she'll probably only be able to eat spirit fruits in half a month.

After finishing her meal, Yun Qing lay down in front of her own tombstone, closed her eyes to rest, and casually searched her memories from her previous life for any cultivation techniques related to the dual spiritual roots of metal and wood.

Just then, the ghostly figure, which had finally lowered her guard, drifted over again.

He crept closer to Yun Qing, and then...

"Wow!"

"Ah!~~~"

He was startled when Yun Qing suddenly opened her eyes, and he squealed and floated ten meters away.

"You...you...you...you..."

"I...I...I...What do you mean, 'I'?" Yun Qing looked at the ghost in front of her and sat up.

With her keen senses from her previous life, she had already sensed the ghostly figure as it drifted over; she just wanted to know what it was up to.

Who knew he was so... naive!

"You seem to have quite the leisurely and refined taste, knowing that I, a junior, am bored, you even came all the way to keep me company. You're so kind!"

The ghost who got friend-zoned: ...? ? ? Are you even polite? Not only did you scare me, but you also made sarcastic remarks!

I'm usually the one scaring others, but today I was almost scared out of my wits by a brat! If word gets out, how will he ever have the face to be a ghost again?!

He immediately released his pressure, and Yun Qing, who was only at the Qi Refining stage, suddenly felt unable to lift his head, and his bones felt like they were being squeezed together.

"S-senpai..."

Seeing that she had something to say, the old ghost removed his oppressive aura; he had only intended to teach her a small lesson.

Upon regaining her freedom, Yun Qing smiled sweeter than honey, "Senior, I know you did this to test our disciples' guard. Senior is truly thoughtful."

"It was our lack of consideration as the younger generation. You have made so many contributions to the Chengtian Sect, yet we didn't even think to spend more time with you. You must have been very bored staying in the Stele Forest for so long, right?"

"May I ask if you could tell me which generation of ancestor you are? I would like to find your tombstone and visit you for a chat when I have time."

After Yun Qing coaxed him, the old man's expression gradually softened, and he even seemed a little happy.

He had terrified tens of thousands of disciples, who would tremble at the sight of him. Only she dared to speak to him, and she spoke to him in exceptionally sweet words.

He put his hands behind his back, raised his chin slightly, and said, "You do have some discernment. Listen carefully, I am Qingyuan, the eighth generation leader of the Chengtian Sect."

Yun Qing's face instantly lit up with admiration. "So you're Ancestor Qingyuan!"

Qingyuan's eyes lit up. "You've heard of me?"

Yun Qing: "Never heard of it."

Qingyuan almost lost her temper. How could this girl's words be so pleasant one minute and so unpleasant the next?

Upon seeing that the old ghost had become transparent, Yun Qing quickly tried to cover it up, saying, "Ancestor, you are clearly a magnanimous, wise, and powerful figure, whose might shakes all directions. Even if I've never heard of you, I can imagine your heroic figure, whose sword could chill fourteen continents!"

"What's even more impressive is that you lived for the Chengtian Sect, and even in death you were willing to guard the ancestors in this Stele Forest. This kind of magnanimity is what I admire most."

Qingyuan was amused by these words and her soul became even more solid.

"Alright! Stop joking around, I have to go now, remember to come chat with me later."

Before Yun Qing could even speak, he floated away.

It wasn't that he didn't want to stay and listen to the girl's flattery; it was mainly that he couldn't leave his own grave for too long.

Not long after Qingyuan had drifted away, before Yunqing could even catch her breath, another ghostly figure drifted in from afar.

This man was much more composed than Qingyuan, with white hair and a slender figure, resembling a strict teacher.

He put his hands behind his back. "You brat, I sent you here to guard the Stele Forest, and instead you're drinking! Do you even know what you did wrong?!"

Yun Qing knelt smoothly, "Senior is right to reprimand me. It was my lack of consideration that led me to this. Please punish me!"

The strict teacher was surprised that Yun Qing admitted her mistake so quickly, and the words of reprimand stuck in his throat, making him feel a little embarrassed.

He cleared his throat twice and said, "Get up. Just don't do it again. Come here, let me see your aptitude."

Yun Qing stood up and obediently walked to him. "Please enlighten me, senior."

The strict teacher glanced at Yun Qing, then clicked his tongue and shook his head.

Yun Qing almost lost her balance. These actions were tantamount to a healer standing in front of you and saying you were beyond saving.

Sure enough, she heard the old man say with a hint of regret, "Your spiritual root aptitude is excellent; it's a heavenly spiritual root. It's just a pity that it's a metal-wood incompatible spiritual root. I'm afraid your cultivation path won't last long."

Yun Qing knelt down again, this time sincerely, "Senior, you are knowledgeable and experienced, do you have a way to resolve this conflicting spiritual root technique?"

The old man stroked his beard. "Yes, there is... but it's too risky."

Yun Qing's gaze was firm. "Senior, please speak. As long as there is a way, I am willing to try no matter how risky it may be."

After thinking for a while, the old man said, "Metal and wood clash, which is a dead end. However, if the two spiritual energies are forcibly fused together by external force at the moment of the most intense collision, it is possible that they will mutate into a lightning spiritual root."

Yun Qing's face lit up with joy. That's right! How come she hadn't thought of that?

A lightning-elemental root, one in ten thousand, the most powerful mutated spiritual root in terms of attack power. If she can truly achieve this, she will not only resolve the issue of elemental incompatibility, but her combat strength will also far surpass what it was before.

The old man, observing her expression, said, "Don't be too happy yet. Becoming a lightning spirit root isn't that simple; the chances of failure are much higher. If you fail, at best your meridians will be severed and your cultivation destroyed. At worst, your soul will be scattered!"

"Even if you mutate into a lightning spirit root, as your cultivation level increases, the power of the heavenly tribulation you have to endure may be twice or even more than that of others."

He originally thought that Yun Qing would back down after he said that, but when he turned around, the child was still happily grinning like a fool.

"Senior, I'm not afraid! As long as I can go far on the path of cultivation, I'm not afraid of anything!"

The old man nodded approvingly. This was the kind of younger generation he wanted to see, not like those who couldn't even answer a few questions properly.

Yun Qing then asked, "Senior, may I now tell you your identity?"

The old man straightened his robes and said, "I am Yin Shuang, the first sect leader of Chengtian Sect."

Founding...the founding patriarch!