“Eldest Senior Sister, you’re back?” Hearing his Eldest Senior Sister call him, Lu Yang cheerfully returned to Heaven’s Gate Peak.
Eldest Senior Sister still had her usual cold demeanor. “Yes, I went to the palace to discuss some matters. I just got back from the palace and heard that you’ve reached the late Foundation Establishment stage.”
Lu Yang thought to himself that it must have been the puppet who told Eldest Senior Sister.
Eldest Senior Sister glanced at Lu Yang, as if seeing through him completely. “Now that you’ve reached the late Foundation Establishment stage, the next step is to plan how to form your Golden Core.”
“The step of forming the Golden Core is crucial for a cultivator. In ancient times, before there were flying boats and such, the ability to fly freely in the sky granted by the Golden Core stage was seen as a watershed between immortals and mortals. Some even refer to the Golden Core as the ‘Great Dao of the Golden Core,’ which shows the importance of this stage.”
“If you form a high-quality Golden Core, it will naturally pave the way for forming a Nascent Soul effortlessly.”
“Of course, with your sword spirit root and exceptional talent, forming a high-quality Golden Core should not be difficult. What you need to consider is what type of high-quality Golden Core to form.”
“Our sect has recorded countless varieties of Golden Cores formed by our disciples in the library. You can go to the library and read them for inspiration.”
“Understood.”
“And take this; it will help you.” Before leaving, Eldest Senior Sister took out a small medicine bottle.
“What is this?” Lu Yang wondered if it was a pill that would prevent damage to his foundation if he failed to form the Golden Core, or perhaps an elixir that guaranteed the formation of a high-quality Golden Core.
As expected of Eldest Senior Sister, she could even get her hands on such valuable items.
“Eye drops. Use them when you’ve read too much.”
“...”
“Thank you for your concern, Eldest Senior Sister.”
“Senior, could you please come out for a moment?” Eldest Senior Sister called out Everlasting Fairy.
“What’s the matter?” Everlasting Fairy was a bit nervous, quickly wondering if she had done something wrong.
Recently, she had been quite well-behaved, not causing trouble for Lu Yang. At most, she just slept while he was cultivating.
Eldest Senior Sister took out a large pile of immortal treasures, each one with a different shape, radiating an immortal aura, clearly not ordinary items.
“These are immortal treasures seized from the Undying Sect. Is there anything here that you want?” Eldest Senior Sister intended to return the items to their original owner.
Everlasting Fairy glanced over them and pouted, “Nothing I want.”
“Senior, what is this?” Eldest Senior Sister picked up a bamboo needle. There were many items among the treasures whose original uses even Eldest Senior Sister didn’t know. She and the Great Xia Dynasty had studied them for a long time without figuring them out. Now was a good time to ask the original owner.
This bamboo needle could be easily controlled by thought, moved extremely quickly, and could penetrate defenses, making it the king of hidden weapons.
“A toothpick.”
Some suspected that the barbecue shop used an addictive drug, but after verification by the Seventh Elder of Pellet Cauldron Peak, it was confirmed that they were just delicious and not drugged.
Three hooded figures stood dumbfounded in front of the barbecue shop, momentarily lost in thought. The bustling scene became distant and the stream of customers blurred.
One of the hooded figures removed their hood and, seeing the lively barbecue shop, sighed:
“Little Liu, Little Gao, are you still alive?”
Hearing the familiar voice, Master Liu and Master Gao froze, thinking they were hearing things.
They looked up and saw the owner of the voice, their faces filled with disbelief.
“Leader?!”
“And me.” The second hooded figure lifted their hood, revealing Deputy Leader Jin.
At this moment, the highest ranks of the Undying Sect—the leader and three deputy leaders—were gathered here.
They were once influential figures, wielding absolute power within one of the four great demon sects. Now, they could only gather at a barbecue stall.
The leader never believed that the fall of the Undying Sect was the fault of Liu and Gao, the true traitor was himself, and he couldn’t blame anyone else.
“Take a seat, we’ll finish these last few orders and close up.”
A long queue still lined up in front of the shop. Master Liu and Master Gao told the people at the back not to queue anymore; they would close after five more orders.
The leader noticed that the boy wiping tables and tidying skewers was an elder from the sect, shook his head lightly, and felt an indescribable emotion.
After Master Liu and Master Gao sold the last order, they announced the end of the business day, closed the shop, and sat down to chat with the leader.
“How did you end up here?”
Very few people knew about the fall of the Undying Sect, and Master Liu and Master Gao were just ordinary barbecue shop owners, unaware of the outside world.
“It’s a long story—” The leader sighed deeply, expressing endless helplessness.
He detailed how Lu Yang and the other two infiltrated the Undying Sect headquarters and how the Great Xia Dynasty surrounded the sect.
The news of the fall of the Undying Sect was heavy. After a moment of silence, Master Liu acknowledged the reality of the sect’s downfall and quickly regained his spirits.
“Luckily, you came. The Dao Seeking Sect is currently divided into many factions. It’s a good time to show our strength, and we were short of manpower. Now you’re here!” Master Liu looked at the leader and Deputy Leader Jin with a burning gaze.
The leader’s eyes lit up.
(End of the chapter)