The Arrogant Immortal
Chapter 157 - 156 Vermilion Bird Soul

Chapter 157: Chapter 156 Vermilion Bird Soul

Xie Jiuniang led the three around Zhengyang Peak for a while.

Then she let them pick a place to build a small courtyard and settle down in the Inner Sect.

The Spiritual Energy in the Inner Sect was indeed richer than that in the Outer Sect, and at the same time, Xie Jiuniang made it clear that she would give thirty percent of her yearly harvest as remuneration.

During this time, Qiao Shiyun had come by once to apologize on behalf of her sister, and incidentally, she delivered this year’s harvest to Xie Jiuniang.

Xie Jiuniang inspected the contents of the Storage Bag; it was all Spirit Fruits and Spirit Plants.

In terms of quantity, it was indeed about half of the harvest.

Qiao Shiyun hadn’t held back the other part; it was compensation for her sister’s earlier offense.

Xie Jiuniang accepted with a smile and sent a Sound Transmission Talisman to inform Chaoyan of the matter.

Chaoyan told her to keep it herself, saying that from then on, the harvest of Zhengyang Peak would belong to her.

Afterward, Chaoyan notified her, "Disciple, your master plans to enter seclusion. If all goes well, I shall come out in three to five years. If you have any doubts about your cultivation, ask your Master Chaoruo for advice. I have already spoken to him..."

Nascent Soul Cultivators enter seclusion for at least several years.

Xie Jiuniang didn’t tell him that she, in fact, also planned to enter seclusion.

She had purchased a batch of Spirit Jade in the Fangshi last time, which would be perfect for crafting Jade Talismans.

At this time, Xie Jiuniang returned to her own cave dwelling to check the letters from her parents.

The content was mostly reassurances, asking her to take good care of herself, and so on.

A few days passed, during which Bai Mudan came to look for her once.

Bai Mudan brought news from Bai Ruiting that Old He had agreed to her condition for repaying the debt of gratitude.

Xie Jiuniang immediately wrote a letter and, along with a bottle of top-quality Spiritual Liquid, placed them in a wooden box. She asked Bai Mudan to deliver them to Bai Ruiting, who would then pass them on to Old He.

This time, Xie Jiuniang truly entered seclusion.

...

Time flies like an arrow, in the blink of an eye.

Before one knew it, four years had passed.

Zhengyang Peak was lush and brimming with vitality, meticulously maintained and well-ordered.

It was again the season for harvest. The Spiritual Fruit Garden was laden with ripening fruits, nearly no land was left fallow, with everything that could be planted being planted, and even ordinary spots were filled with various flowers and plants. There was even cultivation of Spiritual Honey and such.

A few disciples were toiling diligently, very hardworking.

Chaoyan’s cultivation base had improved, reaching the Great Perfection of Nascent Soul.

The first thing he did upon coming out of seclusion was to scan the whole Zhengyang Peak with his Divine Sense.

Noting the clear difference from Zhengyang Peak four years ago, he was somewhat surprised.

The little disciple had managed Zhengyang Peak quite well.

But soon, he was proven wrong...

The reason was that there was no sign of his disciple around, but rather his disciple’s cave dwelling was tightly closed, with a sign for seclusion hanging outside. He asked a disciple about it and learned that his disciple had been in seclusion for four years.

Chaoyan, "..."

So she followed right on the heels of his own seclusion?

Looking towards Xie Xu, Chaoyan asked, "Are you from the Yuanxi clan?"

"Yes, Inner Sect Disciple Xie Xu, pays his respects to True Lord Chaoyan." Xie Xu had established his Foundation three years ago and had chosen to go to Array Peak, but he still managed Zhengyang Peak for Xie Jiuniang.

Several other members of the Xie Family had also established their Foundations.

A few chose to come to the Main Peak and also came to help take care of Zhengyang Peak.

Chaoyan knew they were his disciple’s people; he wasn’t surprised and just nodded his head before leaving, thinking about going to seek the Sect Master brother at the Main Peak, and then paying a visit to his master, Qiansha.

To his surprise, upon arriving at the Main Peak, not only did he meet Chaoruo, he also met Qiansha.

Chaoyan stepped forward to salute, "Disciple pays respects to Master."

"You’ve improved? Not bad," Qiansha praised.

Chaoruo sized up Chaoyan for a moment. "You’ve refined the Pure World Lotus? ...Have you resolved the hidden danger?"

"This was all thanks to my disciple."

Chaoyan replied with a smile, tacitly accepting the credit.

Under the gazes of his master and senior brother, Chaoyan’s thoughts stirred slightly.

A colorful Vermilion Bird phantom appeared, proudly circling above Chaoyan. Its feathers were like fire and rosy clouds, with flames sparkling around it, brilliantly captivating. Its eyes indifferently gazed at Qiansha, the most powerful figure seated at the head, as a faint pressure of a divine beast spilled out.

Qiansha laughed silently, "Little guy, you’re left with only the soul, and yet you dare to show off in front of me?"

"Master, haha, not at all."

Chaoyan hurriedly communicated with the Vermilion Bird, saying everyone here was friendly, "Little Vermilion Bird, let my master check if there are any lingering hidden dangers on you."

The Vermilion Bird tilted its head, eyeing Qiansha before eventually nodding.

Qiansha activated the Eye of Truth and thoroughly inspected the soul of the Vermilion Bird, "The demonic aura has dispersed; there’s no longer any harm."

Chaoruo laughed heartily, "This is fantastic, finally no more troubles."

"This would not have been possible without the Pure World Lotus. Ah, I initially did not even think of wanting the Pure World Lotus; it was this dutiful disciple of mine who insisted on offering it as a sign of filial piety to his master..." Chaoyan began recounting everyday matters in a casual conversational tone.

Such a boastful tone of voice, it was fortunate Qiansha and Chaoruo had good self-control.

Seeing that Chaoyan wanted to boast further, Qiansha raised his hand with a wave, and Chaoyan quickly blocked a strike.

The Vermilion Bird no longer wanted to play with them and slipped back into Chaoyan’s sea of consciousness in a flash.

In his youth, Chaoyan was also a personage of influence, specializing in fire-based cultivation techniques. He then fell silent for several hundred years with no advancement in his cultivation. A huge reason for this was the contract he made with the soul of a divine Vermilion Bird.

It was originally thought to be a great opportunity until after the successful contract he realized the great opportunity had pitfalls.

The Vermilion Bird’s soul was contaminated with demonic aura, which almost led Chaoyan to demonic deviation. It was Qiansha who acted in time to seal the Vermilion Bird.

For several hundred years, Chaoyan had been reinforcing the seal, helping the Vermilion Bird resist the demonic aura and spent countless resources in the process.

Now, having just removed the demonic aura, Chaoyan’s cultivation base leaped to Great Perfection of Nascent Soul without the need for additional cultivation.

After giving a few instructions, Qiansha left.

Leaving the two brothers, they chatted and eventually the topic landed on Xie Jiuniang.

Chaoruo said, "I haven’t seen your disciple in a few years, I heard she’s in closed-door cultivation."

"Indeed, she’s in closed-door cultivation. She’s just too diligent. Even back when she was in the Outer Sect, she was always in seclusion..." Chaoyan kept talking and started boasting again.

Chaoruo listened with a poker face, feeling like ushering him away, "Alright, alright, the Lu Yuan Secret Realm of the Northern Region Sword Sect is about to open, do you want a spot?"

"I have a disciple now, of course I want a spot," Chaoyan said without hesitation.

Chaoruo inquired, "Isn’t your disciple in closed-door cultivation? It opens in less than half a year."

"She’s in seclusion, but I’ll have to pull her out for this. The Lu Yuan Secret Realm opens once every fifty years; we can’t let seclusion cause her to miss it."

The Secret Realm is equivalent to an opportunity land; miss it once, and you might miss the opportunity.

Like the Tianshui Secret Realm, the Lu Yuan Secret Realm is also controlled by a Great Sect, and only Cultivators at the Foundation Establishment level or below can enter.

The Tianxu Sect’s spots were exchanged with the Sword Sect, and the places are very limited, only five hundred available.

A Divinity Transformation Cultivator can obtain a spot under their name, while the remaining places can only be picked from the combat prowess rankings. The allocation rules are the same as for the Tianshui Secret Realm spots.

Chaoyan did not want Xie Jiuniang to miss out.

Otherwise, by the next opening of the Lu Yuan Secret Realm, given Xie Jiuniang’s talent, she would likely have reached Core Formation.

Chaoruo handed a Secret Realm Token to Chaoyan.

This spot was not Chaoyan’s but belonged to Qiansha.