53: Chapter 53: The Demon General

[A moment later, under the young girl's furious gaze, you happily left carrying a storage pouch.]

[Your guess was correct; people deeply connected to the Child of Fortune mostly have impressive backgrounds. Unfortunately, Lin Qianqian probably hasn't received strong support from the faction behind her yet, as she only had five thousand low-grade spirit stones and twenty mid-grade spirit stones on her.]

[You didn't dare take her medicinal pills or cultivation techniques, because while you were picking on her, you constantly had a spine-chilling sensation, which you guessed must be coming from her Dao Protector.]

[In the last simulation, the blood spirit fruit and second-order monster core were sold for a total of five thousand low-grade spirit stones, and selling magic treasures in the black market yielded ten thousand low-grade spirit stones. Adding the remaining five thousand spirit stones and your earnings this time, your net worth reached twenty-seven thousand low-grade spirit stones, making you a genuinely rich woman among Qi Refinement Stage cultivators.]

[However, when it came to a foundation establishment pill...]

[The last time Yunque City sold a foundation establishment pill was twenty years ago, fetching a final price of seventy thousand low-grade spirit stones. Of course, that price was definitely inflated, but its preciousness and scarcity were undeniable.]

[You had previously asked Ling Shuanghua, and indeed, foundation establishment pills could be redeemed in the Tianxuan Sword Sect, but the required merit points were far too high.]

[Accumulating enough merit points through missions at your current cultivation level would take at least over a decade.]

[This wasn't just because the materials needed to refine a foundation establishment pill were extremely precious, but also because it involved a highly mysterious and critical origin energy—Innate Qi.]

["Innate Qi," also known as "Innate Primordial Qi," is a trace of spiritual origin that humans carry from the womb. Stored within the dantian, it is born with the individual and cannot be regenerated.]

[Innate belongs to Yang, while Acquired belongs to Yin.]

[When a cultivator absorbs a large amount of Acquired Spiritual Qi, the Innate Qi in their body is further suppressed. Therefore, a foundation establishment pill must fuse a strand of Innate Qi to awaken and guide the dormant origin deep within the dantian.]

[Hence, breaking through from Qi Refining to Foundation Establishment is also called returning from Acquired to Innate, representing a true metamorphosis in life's level of existence.]

[And the Innate Qi within a foundation establishment pill is extracted from special spiritual herbs over ten thousand years old, showing just how precious it is.]

["Senior Sister!"]

[A sudden voice interrupted your thoughts. Looking up, you saw Lin Bufan standing inside a pavilion, waving at you.]

["Finished talking?"]

[You walked into the pavilion with a standard businesslike smile plastered on your face.]

["Mm."]

[When mentioning this matter, Lin Bufan felt a bit down.]

[At this moment, out of the corner of your eye, you caught a glimpse of a cyan skirt behind a pillar.]

[The corners of your lips curled up silently as a wicked impulse suddenly surged in your heart. You stepped forward two paces and gently embraced the wounded pup.]

["It's fine, Senior Sister is still here with you~"]

["Senior Sister..."]

[Just as Lin Bufan reached out to hug you back, the hem of that skirt seemed startled and quickly shrank back into the shadows.]

[Heheh...]

[You almost burst out laughing, planning to comfort your hurt younger sister later and also figure out the specific function of that golden medallion.]

["Senior Sister... your previous promise back at the Qixia Sect..."]

[The hot breath near your ear made your face flush. At the time, for the sake of the seven-heart glazed lamp, it seemed... you really had promised a few things.]

[Seeing you remain silent, Lin Bufan's eyes grew deep, and he suddenly swept you up in a princess carry.]

["Eh?"]

[You instinctively wrapped your arms around his neck, and then even you were stunned.]

[Damn it! How could I do that so naturally?]

[Your face froze as you fiercely spurned yourself in your heart for a second, then immediately spoke up:]

["Junior Brother, wait, I..."]

["Senior Sister, don't talk, leave it to me!"]

["..."]

[Feeling the powerful arm beneath your knees, you reckoned that as a weak woman you probably couldn't break free, so you silently lowered your head.]

[Ah well, karma is hard to avoid.]

[A cyan-robed figure stepped out from behind the pillar not far from the pavilion. She stared blankly at the two departing figures, feeling a heavy weight on her head and an unbearable bitterness in her heart.]

[After a long while, the cyan figure slowly retreated into the darkness...]

[...]

[Night deepened.]

["Get out!"]

[An angry shout echoed through the rear courtyard, and Lin Bufan flew backward out of the room, landing face first on the ground.]

[*Bang!*]

[In the next moment, the room door slammed shut.]

["Cough~!"]

[Noticing many eyes turning toward him, Lin Bufan calmly got up, dusted off his clothes, and said with an unbothered expression:]

["Senior Sister needs to enter secluded cultivation. You should all go rest."]

[The scene was extremely awkward for a moment.]

["Hahaha, then Third Young Master should also rest early..."]

[After someone smoothed things over, everyone held back their laughter and slowly dispersed.]

[A moment later, Lin Bufan rubbed his nose guiltily, lingered for a long time, and then reluctantly walked toward a nearby small courtyard.]

[Inside the room, you gritted your teeth, your ears burning hot, your cheeks flushing a shade redder from anger.]

["That audacity-filled, lustful dog!"]

[*Rumble!*]

[Suddenly, a black shadow fell from the sky, crashing through the roof and plunging straight into the room.]

[Waving your sleeve to disperse the filling dust and smoke, you looked at the hideous hole in the roof and the dying woman lying in the debris, temporarily speechless.]

["Senior Sister, what happened?"]

[Within a few breaths, Lin Bufan, having turned back, rushed in with an anxious expression. Seeing the scene before him, he exchanged glances with you and fell silent as well.]

[The woman on the ground was none other than the Qixia Sect Master's personal disciple—Liu Qingyue.]

["Cough... cough cough..."]

[Just as the two of you were filled with doubt, Liu Qingyue coughed frantically a few times and slowly opened her eyes.]

["This is..."]

[While she was confused, a woman's face with a faint half-smile appeared before her, looking somewhat familiar...]

["Liu Qingyue, what business brings you to launch a night raid on our Lin Family?"]

[Lin Bufan stepped forward, pulled you—who was squatting on the ground looking curious—to the side, and asked with a hostile expression.]

["Lin Family... Lin Bufan?"]

[Only now did Liu Qingyue seem to snap back to reality. Her confused expression suddenly shifted, and she struggled, trying to crawl toward the door.]

[You had a bad premonition, so you stepped forward and stuffed a healing pill into her mouth.]

["What on earth happened?"]

[Seeing her complexion ease slightly, you immediately asked.]

["De... Demon General!"]

[Liu Qingyue's face was already pale, and now a clear look of terror emerged upon it.]

[Hearing those words, you and Lin Bufan exchanged a look, both seeing gravity in each other's eyes.]

[The Demon Race!]

[The common enemy of all cultivators on Jiuhuan Continent, a fight to the death.]

[Pseudo-Demons correspond to the Qi Refinement Stage, True Demons correspond to the Foundation Establishment Stage, and Demon Generals correspond precisely to Golden Core cultivators.]

[At this moment, a white-robed figure suddenly appeared before the three of you—it was Daoist Master Duanwang, who had been concealing himself to act like a grand master.]

[He furrowed his brows, his gaze resting heavily on Liu Qingyue.]

["Did you escape from the Qixia Sect?"]

[Liu Qingyue's lips moved slightly, and a moment later, she let out a sorrowful smile.]

["The Qixia Sect is gone..."]

...