Eternal Swordmaster
Chapter 660 - 655 Breakthrough 1

Chapter 660: Chapter 655 Breakthrough 1

"One thousand nine hundred points. Just right," Lin Xin calculated his current contribution points, which were exactly enough to buy the formation, with some to spare.

Determined, he chose to accept the task, and a short message was immediately transmitted from the jade talisman.

’Please, after the task announcement is closed, assemble within thirty days at Huangyi Yuan’s Five Petal Mountain.’

"Within thirty days? There’s still plenty of time." Lin Xin checked the remaining time until the task closed and saw there were over forty days left.

After he took the task, the number of participants displayed above increased by one. Initially, four people were being gathered, but now there were already three, with one spot still open.

Lin Xin carefully put away the jade talisman, finished his water, and took a moment to rest cross-legged until the sky above the Dragon Serpent Realm faintly started to glow golden around noon.

Only then did he slowly stand up, stepped out the door, and ascended into the air, flying straight toward Deep Fire Palace.

He quickly arrived at the grand entrance of Deep Fire Palace, where the gate stood wide open, and several exquisitely dressed, beautiful girls were waiting. They all wore matching green skirts and white-gold hairpins.

Lin Xin glanced over the group, sensing the strong mana fluctuations from their bodies, and his eyebrows furrowed slightly.

But these people kept their gaze steady, never glancing his way, a testament to their training.

He strode into the palace where the Dragon Serpent Realm Master was speaking in a low voice with a dignified and majestic woman in a green robe.

Upon hearing his approach, both turned to look at him.

"That will be all then," the noblewoman said abruptly, ceasing her conversation. She nodded faintly at the Dragon Serpent and turned to leave.

As Lin Xin drew near her, he felt a terrifying chill, like that of eternal mysterious ice, pouring into every pore of his body. He was still more than ten meters from the woman, yet he could already feel half of his body becoming numb and losing sensation.

His heart was filled with shock, knowing this was a fearful being on the same level as his honored master.

Lin Xin hurriedly bowed his head and stood to the side, respectfully waiting for the woman to leave.

As the woman passed by, she glanced at him and nodded slightly. Then, without waiting for a response, she transformed into a blue shadow and disappeared outside of the palace gate.

The girls outside waiting promptly rolled on the ground, transforming into giant white-feathered birds, and behind them appeared a delicate and magnificent white-gold carriage, onto which they helped the noblewoman.

The carriage lifted into the sky and, pulled by several giant birds, flew off into the distance.

Lin Xin watched as she left.

Only then did he turn his gaze toward the Dragon Serpent Realm Master.

"Honored Master..."

"How was it? It seems the Huan Yin Palace Master has a good impression of you," the Dragon Serpent said with a self-satisfied smile, stroking his chin. "Perhaps a visit to Huan Yin Palace could even yield a couple of Taoist companions."

"Honored Master jests, but who is this Huan Yin Palace Master?" Lin Xin seemed to have heard this name before.

"Huan Yin Palace is one of the Eight Great Seals, where an ancient Evil God King is sealed. Just like at your hometown, Qiushi, there’s also a seal, but the Evil Gods sealed there are mostly of the Sixth Rank level. After many years of being sealed, they’ve weakened considerably and the energy that leaks out is at most Fifth Rank level."

The Dragon Serpent took the rare opportunity to explain these matters to Lin Xin since he was in the mood, and began to elaborate.

"Evil Gods aren’t worth anything to us cultivators no matter how they are dealt with. Killing them requires too much effort, and breaking them down costs an enormous amount, only to yield a pile of useless scraps.

One of the characteristics of an Evil God is immunity to any contract constraints, their Evil Qi is extremely corruptive and they are difficult to kill.

That’s why no one has touched the seal of the Evil Gods in Qiushi; not because it can’t be done, but because no one wants to pay such a heavy price to completely eliminate all the Evil Gods there.

Speaking of Huan Yin Palace, it’s needless to say that something even more terrifying and powerful, an Evil God King, is hidden there."

The Dragon Serpent said with a sense of gravity.

"Then, Teacher, have you ever heard of an Evil God named Xia?"

Lin Xin tried to reproduce the initial syllables of the name he heard the first time he encountered Xia.

"Hmm..."

The Dragon Serpent frowned in thought.

"Xia? It seems familiar, I’ve heard it somewhere."

Lin Xin narrowed his eyes slightly, a flicker of hope rising in his heart.

Trusting in the Dragon Serpent Realm Master more than the strange and dangerous Xia, he carefully described Xia’s appearance in detail.

As the description became more specific, the face of the Dragon Serpent Realm Master grew increasingly serious.

When Lin Xin finished, the master pinched his beard with one hand and gently tapped the armrest of his chair with the other, not replying immediately.

Lin Xin waited quietly, judging from the Realm Master’s expression that this Xia was no ordinary entity.

After about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, the Dragon Serpent slowly came to his senses.

"If I’m not mistaken, and you haven’t remembered wrong, then this Xia you’re talking about should be the Formless Deceiver, a rather notorious special Evil God from ancient times."

"The Formless Deceiver?" Lin Xin’s attention sharpened, eager to hear the Dragon Serpent’s explanation. This was key to understanding more about Xia.

"A very tricky fellow. I only heard about him back then, he was at least a top Sixth Rank presence. So he was sealed in Qiushi... no wonder..."

The Dragon Serpent seemed to have realized something, his face growing more solemn.

"It’s like the calm before the storm, but even if it has some scheme, my Green Lake Mountain isn’t afraid.

Lieshan, you came here to leave on a journey, didn’t you? Be careful on your way, and if you get any news about Xia, let me know immediately."

"Disciple understands,"

Lin Xin answered respectfully.

He was not surprised that the Dragon Serpent knew he planned to leave; his Honored Master had lived for so long, long enough to compare with the Shanlu deer of the Underworld.

That he knew some Spell Methods for divining cause and effect was also to be expected.

"Disciple has come this time to ask Honored Master to remove the lingering effects left by the Heavenly Demon Army Master," Lin Xin said.

"That, ah, cannot be removed," the Dragon Serpent said with a smile. "But don’t worry, if it were a one-on-one curse released by the Heavenly Demon Army Master, perhaps it could not be removed. But for this kind of widespread net-casting group curse, you just need to avoid killing a single Void Demon Spirit within fifteen years, and it will be removed automatically."

"Within fifteen years?" Lin Xin’s heart lightened.

"Correct."

The Dragon Serpent was also somewhat careless; only now, when his disciple mentioned he still experienced lingering effects, did the Realm Master’s eyes light up with red, as he looked carefully at Lin Xin.

"Hmm... Your injuries have just healed, and aside from the lingering effects, there’s nothing... Eh? You’ve broken through to a new realm?"

He was slightly shaken, his expression becoming somewhat astonished.

Woosh!

The Dragon Serpent Realm Master vanished from his seat and appeared beside Lin Xin, grasping his wrist.

A strong yet gentle force field enveloped Lin Xin in an instant.

Upon examination, the Dragon Serpent’s face immediately lit up with great joy.

"Good, good, good!!! Hahaha!"

He laughed heartily, looking up.

"Worthy of being my Dragon Serpent’s disciple, to break through as a Fifth Rank pureblood so quickly! Hehehehe!!"

"I originally thought you would need at least a hundred years to break through this barrier, but you’ve done it so quickly! Worthy of being a disciple from my Dragon Serpent Realm! Hahaha!!"

After his wild laughter, he flipped his hand, and a golden, round pill suddenly appeared in his palm.

This pill was strange; its surface actually sported fine fuzz, and a circle of pink runes slowly orbited it, emitting a faint buzzing sound.

"This is a Huangyuan Pill that I refined not long ago. You’ve just had a breakthrough, only lacking the Qingyuan Cauldron to condense Taiqing Qi. This Huangyuan Pill can save you at least fifty years of cultivation. The only side effect is a bit of minor pain after taking it."

As he spoke, the Dragon Serpent stuffed the pill into Lin Xin’s hands.

"I still have quite a few of the Huangyuan Pills I refined. If you wish to take more, you can come to the Deep Fire Palace anytime; you can take another one every fifty years."

He patted Lin Xin’s shoulder.

"And about the Taoist Soldier Seed, when you come back, it will be time to choose a Land for God Worship. From the collection of the Deep Fire Palace, you can pick one Taoist Soldier to take with you."

"Thank you, Honored Master," Lin Xin said, elated. He knew how precious the Taoist Soldier Seeds stored in the Deep Fire Palace were—all rare kinds, with seeds from every hierarchy. If you wanted to buy them, you wouldn’t even dream of it without hundreds of thousands of Contribution Points.

And the Huangyuan Pill, such a pill that could enhance the cultivation of Fifth Rank cultivators, not to mention the Pill Prescription, Lin Xin had never even heard of it before.

The Fifth Rank was already on par with a Human Immortal, a sacred body among immortals in the Mortal World where most material medicines had no effect.

Only a very few parts could have an impact, but all were very limited.

And the pills that could increase Human Immortal Cultivation required such rare materials for refinement that even Fifth Rank cultivators dared not even think about it.

"Alright, go prepare yours," said the Dragon Serpent, his mood improved by giving the pill and receiving the good news of his disciple’s breakthrough. In just over a decade, the disciple they had snatched from Qing Shan Realm had broken through to a new realm.

"No, I must let that old fool from Qing Shan know about this good news right away... hmm... it should appear as though leaked unintentionally..."

The more the Dragon Serpent thought about it, the more exhilarating it felt; he could already imagine the silly look on old Qing Shan’s face as his nose twisted with fury.

Lin Xin had no choice but to take his leave.

He left the empty Deep Fire Palace.

With the Huangyuan Pill in hand, he went straight back to the Cave Mansion he had been secluding himself in. With a few dozen days left, it was the perfect opportunity to see the effects of this pill.

*********************

In a place within the Void.

A figure cloaked in a pitch-black robe was floating within the Void.

The hem of his robe spread out like a large piece of torn cloth, draping down three or four meters long, completely concealing his legs.

With his head lowered, his face unseen, only the short hair squirming like fresh blood was visible.

"One hundred and sixty pawn pieces, ninety-four have been dealt with. Wang Zhu, your plans seem to be experiencing some difficulties," the figure said softly, speaking as if someone were at his side although there was clearly nothing there.

"So what?" a hoarse and aged voice responded.

"Those lunatics from Green Lake Mountain found out and uprooted more than sixty of our pawns in an instant. What about your plan? Wasn’t it also unsuccessful? You breached the Void defenses and even activated the pawns planted years ago, yet you were still repelled by Green Lake Mountain," the figure continued indifferently.

"That was just an accident," the figure replied in a mild tone.

"Whether it’s an accident or not, it’s not for you to say," Wang Zhu sneered. "Had it been us, we could have surely broken through the deadlock in one fell swoop."

"You inside, me outside, that was the arrangement set long ago. I even summoned the second day’s Heavenly Demon Army Master, yet I didn’t expect..." the figure sighed helplessly. "These Demon Spirits are too foolish, wasting such strong power and force."

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