The Arrogant Immortal
Chapter 89: How Many Layers of Skin Have Been Scraped Off?

Chapter 89: Chapter 89: How Many Layers of Skin Have Been Scraped Off?

The return journey was unlike the one they had embarked upon. Whereas they had set out with calm winds and tranquil waves, their return was a heart-stopping adventure, with a Divinity Transformation powerhouse occasionally stopping the flying boat.

The reason was that they had heard their family disciple’s opportunistic claim of an Auspicious Beast Egg had been stolen by someone else, and they were especially curious to take a look.

Of the more than twenty prodigies involved in the struggle, not all their masters were of Divinity Transformation, but several became quite interested as soon as they heard it was a Kirin Auspicious Beast.

Hurrying over to take a look.

But seeing it was only a congenitally deficient little Kirin, their interest greatly diminished, as did their thoughts of shaking down the Tianxu Sect.

Lord Ziyang came in haste and took both Xie Ying and the Water Kirin away with him.

Xie Jiu’niang watched as Xie Ying was taken away, feeling extremely fortunate in her heart. She was thankful she had been clear-headed enough not to bring the Water Kirin out personally, or else where would she find a master to stand up for her?

Mo Chuan asked softly, "Very curious?"

"Yes, just a little Kirin attracted several powerhouses..."

"This matter is not yet over; wait until we return to the Sect, there will still be things to deal with. The Kirin is a symbol of good fortune, having disappeared from this world for over ten thousand years..." Mo Chuan had once heard as a child that this world had been forsaken, which is why no one had ascended to immortality.

Mo Chuan then turned to the little girl beside him and suddenly found it strange that he wanted to confide in her. But the little girl was just beginning Qi Cultivation, it was too early to concern herself with ascension.

He, too, was early.

In fact, he harbored a suspicion in his heart, but he never dared to expose it. The consequences of doing so were something neither he nor his family could afford...

Mo Chuan asked in confusion, "You’re not asking?"

"Asking what?"

At this point, Xie Jiu’niang really started to think he might have some mental issues. Could it be a aftereffect of pretending for too long?

When Mo Chuan encountered her gaze, which seemed to pity his foolishness, he became uncomfortable and, to avoid embarrassment, continued, "Aren’t you curious about when the last Auspicious Beast appeared?"

"When do you say it was?" Xie Jiu’niang asked nonchalantly.

"It was ten thousand years ago. It’s said that a disciple from a small Sect had once obtained a Kirin Cub, but for reasons unknown, the Kirin died the next day."

"That’s not hard to guess. Being from a small Sect, the disciple couldn’t defend it. Some powerful person wanted to rob it, tried to forcefully establish a contract, and the little cub would rather die than submit."

Xie Jiu’niang guessed the truth with just a thought.

Mo Chuan had nothing to say. According to his family’s records, it was indeed the legitimate disciple of a certain family who, relying on their status, tried to seize the Kirin Cub. The cub resisted and died; then, within a hundred years, the family declined and disappeared.

The disciple from the small Sect turned out to be once the Child of Destiny. Afterwards, because of this incident, they became wary and were not robbed of their resources without realizing it. They also became a strong figure in the realm. Unfortunately, they simply lacked the luck needed for the path to immortality, unable to ascend and ultimately exhausted their lifespan.

Thinking of some secrets, Mo Chuan no longer felt like chatting.

The flying boat smoothly returned to the Sect.

In the grand plaza in front of the mountain gate, the flying boat landed.

Ten large tables were set up on the plaza, manned by Sect officials specially designated to purchase resources from the Tianshui Secret Realm.

Xie Jiu’niang disembarked from the flying boat and initially intended to leave, only to find that almost no one was departing, not even Mo Chuan.

Mo Chuan waited until nearly everyone was in line before he approached a table with fewer people and queued up.

Xie Jiu’niang thought for a moment and then followed behind him, asking softly, "Uncle Master Mo, what is everyone doing..."

"This is a rule for those who venture into the Secret Realm. Each disciple must sell half of their harvest to the Sect at half price," explained Mo Chuan, who found her bewildered face amusing. "How so? Didn’t you know?"

"No, I had no idea.

Xie Jiu’niang’s scalp tingled.

This was something she had truly... forgotten!

Mo Chuan indifferently said, "No matter, you know now. Besides, what could you, a mere beginner in Qi Cultivation, possibly have of value?"

No!

She had a pile of valuable items.

What should she do?

Xie Jiu’niang quietly began to observe the situation.

Everything was simply taken out and placed in the designated area by the officials. At a glance, it seemed quite a lot.

Water Elemental Spiritual Plants, minerals, as well as the bones and shells of Water Beasts, among other miscellaneous items, were all there.

The Sect officials would tally the items and then exchange them for Contribution Points or Spirit Stones, but they did not search people or inspect their belongings.

Xie Jiu’niang breathed a sigh of relief.

Then it was Mo Chuan’s turn.

He first handed over his Secret Realm Token, then waved his hand to take out a large pile of items, more than all the Disciples before him, drawing a crowd of onlookers.

The official asked, "Do you want to exchange for Contribution Points, or for Spirit Stones?"

"Turn them all into Contribution Points," Mo Chuan said as he handed over his identity Jade Token.

The official credited the corresponding Contribution Points into it.

Xie Jiu’niang hadn’t prepared in advance, but fortunately, she had a Storage Bag at her waist meant to deceive onlookers. In the Secret Realm, she had found some ordinary resources, or interesting and pretty but worthless things from the bottom of the water. She could stuff them into the bag and sell half to the Sect without issue.

It was Xie Jiuniang’s turn.

The overseer spoke, "Hand over the Tianshui Secret Realm Token."

Xie Jiuniang handed over the Secret Realm Token.

Unknown to the overseers, some technique caused array patterns to flash within his hand upon the token.

Xie Jiuniang took out half of the items from the storage bag at her waist.

But the overseer didn’t count them, simply looking at Xie Jiuniang, waiting for her to continue.

With no choice, Xie Jiuniang stiffened her resolve and laid out the rest of the items from the storage bag.

Quite a pile of items, really not a small amount.

At least, it appeared more impressive than what the previous half of the disciples had presented. Drawn by curiosity, some disciples looked over and burst into laughter.

"Who is this? So odd? Going into the Secret Realm just to collect trash, truly a waste of a spot..." commented one disciple with sarcasm.

Another joined in the mockery, "Probably scared of dying, gathering a pile of trash to make up the numbers."

"Hahaha, probably thought that more is better."

"Seems like a Qi Cultivation eighth layer disciple..."

"Shut up, you lot, didn’t you see the jade token at his waist?" With these words, the laughter quickly subsided. Turns out it was a disciple with connections; now it made sense.

Mo Chuan glanced at the pile and couldn’t help but ask, "Luminous stones from the bottom of the water? What do you need so many for?"

"With them, there’s no need for oil lamps, and when I set up a stall in the Fangshi, surely someone will buy them," Xie Jiuniang reasoned.

The overseer took out a storage bag, packed the items properly, but he didn’t settle the account with Xie Jiuniang and said indifferently, "This isn’t half."

Xie Jiuniang’s face stiffened.

Couldn’t hide it anymore?

Reluctantly, she fished out another storage bag and laid out half of its contents.

The overseer checked them, glancing at Xie Jiuniang repeatedly until his eyes met Mo Chuan, who was watching him with an impassive stare.

The overseer knew Mo Chuan’s true identity when the Contribution Points were distributed earlier.

Mo Chuan asked, "Aren’t these items enough for half? Not bad for a minor Qi Cultivator, right?"

"But the rules of the Sect..."

The overseer gritted his teeth, unwilling to bend the rules.

Xie Jiuniang continued to extract items, drawing all the surrounding gazes, until all four storage bags were emptied.

The quantity was astonishing.

More than what a whole group of geniuses had gathered!

More and more disciples gathered around to watch the excitement, including Lin Wangchen, Ren Bingyan, and other geniuses who had initially thought to leave, but now their attention was captured.

There was fervent discussion among them.

"Is she really Qi Cultivation eighth layer?"

"She found more than us! Impressive!"

"Did she stumble upon a treasure spot as soon as she entered?"

"Was it a resource pit? I’m so envious; why was I so unlucky, getting teleported to a desolate area of water..."

Xie Jiuniang didn’t want to draw attention, yet she ended up being the center of it. She had only one large-capacity storage bag left on her, filled with a large batch of Rainbow Stones.

She didn’t want to hand it over.

If people made the connection to the Water Kirin, that would spell trouble.

Yet, despite the multitude of items, the overseer still claimed it wasn’t half!

Even the overseer himself was extremely shocked.

Who could have expected an inconspicuous little disciple to scavenge such a massive amount of resources from the Tianshui Secret Realm?

Mo Chuan was equally astonished.

How many layers of ground did she scrape up?

Although the items weren’t all worth Spirit Stones, the sheer quantity was overwhelming; they were worth at least several million Spirit Stones.

No one knew that compared to the full collection Xie Jiuniang held, the items displayed were just the tip of the iceberg.

Ninety percent of the items were kept in more than a dozen Storage Rings.

But could she reveal the Storage Rings?

Impossible!

The vast amount of cultivation resources within, once known, would shock and tempt even Divinity Transformation experts.

For someone as insignificant as her, if the existence of Spirit Crystals or Spiritual Marrow were known, she wouldn’t be able to protect a single piece...