143: Chapter 143 The True Inheritance of the Falling Cloud Sect

[Your fingertips moved slightly, already prepared to activate the [Purple Mansion Reincarnation] trait.]

[Just then, a sudden change occurred.]

[A streak of cyan sword light shot out from the forest, fast as lightning.]

["Swish!"]

[The sword light accurately pierced the throat of the Purple-Striped Thunder Leopard, pinning it to the ground. The leopard's massive body twitched a few times, the lightning on its body rapidly extinguished, and it completely ceased breathing.]

[You withdrew your fingertips and looked up.]

[From the treetops, a graceful cyan figure floated down. It was a young woman wearing a cyan Daoist robe. Her skin was whiter than snow, and her features were cold and breathtakingly beautiful. She held a long sword that emitted a faint ripple of water, her robes fluttering, and she was surrounded by an aura of Immortal Qi that seemed otherworldly.]

[After landing, the woman glanced at you. When her gaze touched your unmasked face, she was visibly stunned for a moment, a flash of admiration crossing her eyes. However, she quickly composed herself, walked over to the leopard's corpse, waved her jade hand, and stored it into the Storage Pouch at her waist.]

[Seeing that she had finished, you immediately put on a grateful expression, stepped forward, and bowed gracefully.]

["Many thanks to this Fairy for saving my life."]

[The woman looked at you, then at the panting Xiao Wang on the ground. Her voice was as cold and clear as a spring: "No need. I came to the Ten Thousand Mountains to hunt Yao Beasts and earn Spirit Stones anyway."]

[She paused, her gaze sweeping over you sharply: "It is you, however. With a mere Opening Aperture Realm, first aperture cultivation, you dare to bring a Mortal beast deep into the Ten Thousand Mountains? Do you not want your life?"]

[You immediately put on a fearful expression and explained: "Fairy, please understand. I am from the Eastern Tang Dynasty. I heard that there was a Cultivation World deep within these mountains, so in order to pursue the Dao, I gathered my courage and ventured in."]

["Eastern Tang Dynasty?" The woman frowned slightly, clearly having never heard of this Mortal nation.]

[You realized you had slipped up and quickly added: "It's just a remote, small, Mortal nation. I have yearned for the Dao since I was young, and unwilling to turn into a handful of dust after a century, I embarked on the path of seeking immortality alone."]

[Hearing this, the woman looked you up and down once more.]

[She saw that your bone age was only seventeen or eighteen, and your appearance was breathtakingly beautiful. At this moment, with bloodstains on your back, you looked pitiful. Deep within her originally cold heart, a sense of pity that even she hadn't noticed unexpectedly arose.]

["So beautiful, yet so bold..." the woman sighed inwardly.]

["Fine." She blurted out as if possessed, "I happen to be leaving the mountains to return to the market, I will give you a lift on the way."]

[Once the words left her mouth, she felt a bit annoyed. Since when did she become so meddlesome?]

[But you clearly didn't give her a chance to regret it. You immediately jumped up happily and thanked her repeatedly: "Thank you, Fairy Sister! Not only is Fairy Sister beautiful, but your heart is as kind as a Bodhisattva's!"]

[The woman felt uncomfortable being called "Sister" by you repeatedly. She stiffened her face and turned away, though the tips of her ears turned a shade of red that was barely perceptible.]

[Night fell, inside a hidden cave deep within the Ten Thousand Mountains.]

[The bonfire crackled, its orange-red light dispelling the chill within the cave.]

[After traveling together for half a day, you had already figured out the woman's background. Her name was Su Mianyue, a True Disciple of the Luoyun Sect, with Qi Refining Perfection cultivation, and she cultivated a water-based Cultivation Technique.]

[You sat by the fire, calculating inwardly. Beautiful, strong, and a True Disciple of a major Sect—this was simply the perfect initial connection in the Cultivation World.]

[Su Mianyue had just finished building the fire. When she turned her head, she found you resting your chin on your hands, staring at her unblinkingly.]

[She frowned slightly, feeling a bit uncomfortable under your gaze: "Why are you staring at me?"]

[Your eyes curved into crescents, and you smiled sweetly: "Of course it's because Sister Su is too beautiful. Looking at you, I don't even feel the pain from my wounds anymore."]

[Su Mianyue was cold by nature, and most of the people she interacted with in the Sect were blockheads obsessed with cultivation. Having never heard such direct and mushy praise, a faint blush spread across her cheeks. She feigned anger and glared at you: "Smooth-tongued."]

[Immediately after, she pointed to the dried blood on your back: "Turn around. The wounds on your back have been invaded by Demonic Qi. If they are not treated in time, they will leave ugly scars."]

[You obediently turned around, facing away from the firelight, and pulled your top down halfway, revealing your smooth, jade-like shoulders and those three hideous claw marks.]

[Su Mianyue took a small cyan jade bottle from her Storage Pouch, poured out some emerald-green ointment that emitted a faint fragrance, and gently applied it to your wounds with her fingertips.]

[The moment the ointment touched your skin, a cooling sensation seeped into your flesh, the Demonic Qi was rapidly removed, and the intense pain immediately dissipated by more than half.]

["Hiss... so comfortable." You let out a soft moan, "Sister Su, this ointment must be very expensive, right?"]

["It's the Sect's secret Hundred Herbs Jade Condensing Ointment, three Low-Grade Spirit Stones per bottle. It's not expensive." Su Mianyue's movements were gentle, her tone flat.]

[You put your clothes back on, turned around, and asked with feigned curiosity: "Sister Su, you are a True Disciple of the Luoyun Sect, with a noble status. Do you still need to enter the mountains yourself to hunt Yao Beasts and earn Spirit Stones?"]

[Su Mianyue's action of putting away the jade bottle paused for a moment. She smiled self-deprecatingly: "What does it matter if I am a True Disciple? The Sect is not a charity. The monthly allowance is simply not enough for my cultivation needs. I am currently in need of a large sum of Spirit Stones to bid on a Foundation Establishment Stage fire-type Cultivation Technique at the market auction."]

[As soon as she finished speaking, she shook her head, seemingly feeling that it was superfluous to say these things to a Mortal girl she had just met.]

[But after listening, your eyes lit up.]

[A Foundation Establishment Stage fire-type Cultivation Technique?]

[You were familiar with this stuff! Wasn't the Burning Heaven True Art you cultivated exactly that? And it could even be considered top-tier among Foundation Establishment Cultivation Techniques.]

[Your brain worked at high speed. As for the Cultivation Technique, you already had it memorized. Teaching it to others had no cost for you. But the problem was, an innocent man commits no crime, but his wealth makes him guilty. As a rookie in the Opening Aperture Realm, if you suddenly produced a Foundation Establishment Stage Cultivation Technique, would Su Mianyue think you had other good things and develop evil thoughts of killing you to seize them?]

[You carefully recalled Su Mianyue's actions today. She saved you, used expensive healing medicine on you, and although she was cold in conversation, there was no malice.]

["Gamble once, and the bicycle turns into a motorcycle." You hardened your heart, "If I bet wrong, at worst I'll waste one [Purple Mansion Reincarnation] trump card and send her on her way on the spot. Anyway, this trump card was saved thanks to her help."]

[After weighing the pros and cons, you looked up at Su Mianyue and said seriously: "Sister Su, actually... I have a Foundation Establishment Stage fire-type Cultivation Technique."]

[Su Mianyue's hand, which was poking the bonfire, paused in mid-air. She turned her head to look at you, her eyes filled with absurdity: "You? An Opening Aperture Realm cultivator from the Mortal world?"]

[You didn't waste any words and directly began to recite: "Nine Variations of Li Fire, Qi sinks into the Qi Sea, Yang extreme gives birth to Yin, Yin extreme transforms into Fire. Use spirit to control Qi, burn the heavens and boil the seas..."]

[What you were reciting was the opening outline of the Burning Heaven True Art.]

[Initially, Su Mianyue only held the attitude of listening to a joke, but after hearing just three lines, her expression changed. As a True Disciple with Qi Refining Perfection, her discernment was extremely high. The profound Dao principles of the fire element contained in these few short lines of incantation were obscure and definitely not comparable to ordinary Cultivation Techniques.]

["Stop!" Su Mianyue stood up abruptly, her chest heaving violently, staring at you fixedly, "Where did you get this Cultivation Technique?"]

["I picked it up in an abandoned cave on my way to the Cultivation World." You lied without blushing or skipping a beat, "This is also what I Cultivate."]

[Su Mianyue sat back down, her gaze complex to the extreme.]