219: Master, how afraid are you that your disciple will perish?

[Ice Soul Cold Jade Ring, Low Grade Storage Spiritual Artifact. Carved from polar ice core, refined with void crystals. Contains a hundred acres of space, can be partitioned. Automatically releases an Ice Soul Cold Light Shield for protection.]

A storage ring at the Spiritual Artifact level!

Su Ling felt a surge of joy. The ring he had previously obtained from Pei Jianbai only had a space of two or three acres.

In his eyes, that had already been large enough.

He hadn't expected this Cold Jade Ring to have a hundred acres of space and even come with a defensive function.

"Thank you, Revered Master..."

Su Ling immediately took the Cold Jade Ring and offered his respectful thanks.

He quietly probed inside with his Divine Sense, and his pupils suddenly constricted.

Inside the jade ring's space, High-Grade Spirit Stones were piled up like mountains; a rough sweep revealed a staggering amount of two or three million.

Back then, Thousand Star City Lord Li Xiuyuan had only spent a hundred thousand High-Grade Spirit Stones to purchase the fragment of the phoenix dance nine-fierce ruler.

And now, his Revered Master Clear Ripple had bestowed such a shocking sum with a casual wave of her hand.

With this kind of wealth, one could probably even trade for a complete Low Grade Spirit Treasure.

What made his breathing hitch even more were the ten jade bottles lined up neatly to the side, their surfaces misty with Spiritual Qi and swirling with immortal intent.

[Hundred Spirit Rejuvenation Pill, Rank Seven High Grade Immortal Pill.]

He had once seen an introduction to this pill in the Artifact Hall of the Star Refining Dao Sect, which said it was refined from a hundred types of Spirit Medicine.

Just one pill could allow a Cultivator below the True Immortal level to fully recover from the brink of death.

Whether it was the Divine Soul, Physical Body, or magical power, everything would return to its Peak.

One pill was worth two million Mid-Grade Spirit Stones, and before him... there were actually a full hundred pills.

"Revered Master..."

Su Ling's throat moved slightly, and for a moment, he was speechless.

Immortal Venerable Clear Ripple usually only passed on Cultivation Techniques and did not concern herself with external items, yet this time she had bestowed such immense wealth.

He couldn't help but think to himself: Just how afraid is Revered Master that her Disciple will fall?

He only dared to let this thought swirl in the depths of his heart, never daring to ask it out loud.

If he displeased his Revered Master and she took these treasures back, he would truly regret it too late.

"No need to overthink it, just Cultivate well."

Immortal Venerable Clear Ripple also seemed unaccustomed to such a sentimental scene. She waved her hand, her tone returning to its usual coldness. "There is no need to rush your Breakthrough... first, practice your Cultivation Techniques and secret arts well. If you fall on the plane battlefield, it is my reputation that will be lost!"

"Your Disciple will keep Revered Master's teachings in mind!"

Su Ling's lips twitched slightly, and he hurriedly bowed in response.

Though the words were unpleasant, they were the truth.

Condensing a Nascent Soul had already attracted a Lightning Tribulation; who knew if he would be struck again when breaking through to Soul Transformation?

Looking across the entire Canglang Plane, he had never heard of any Golden Immortal's Disciple whose cultivation was lower than the Body Integration stage.

But as the Personal Disciple of Immortal Venerable Clear Ripple, one of the three great Golden Immortals of the Bitao Sect, his Peak Nascent Soul cultivation was indeed somewhat embarrassing.

If he really fell in the upcoming plane battlefield, it wouldn't just be a matter of insufficient cultivation; it would be a genuine disgrace to his Revered Master.

His only option now was to follow his Revered Master's words, Cultivate various Cultivation Techniques and secret arts well, and try his best to solidify his foundation.

If he really did attract a Lightning Tribulation, at least his chances of survival would be higher.

The illusory sea boat flew all the way to the Bitao Sect's main Peak, Tianqing Peak.

Immortal Venerable Clear Ripple dropped Su Ling off at the mountain foot square and headed straight for the Sect's main hall, sending out messages to gather all the Sect's True Immortals, including True Lord Lu Feng.

During her previous two trips to the Yunlan Realm for birthday celebrations, she had also heard rumors that the Qinghua Immortal Court might initiate a great war.

It was just that at that time, the Bitao Sect's strength was still shallow and they had no War Slaves to use, so participating would have been meaningless.

It wasn't until the discovery of the Jinhun Realm several hundred years ago that the Seven Great Sects' strength increased greatly, giving them the confidence to join the war.

Now that she had her Revered Master's approval, she needed to start making arrangements as soon as possible.

The scale of this plane war was massive, and the pre-war preparations could not afford any mistakes.

Not only did she have to mobilize the Sect's forces, but she also needed to coordinate with the other Six Sects regarding the number of troops, the list of True Immortals and Golden Immortals participating, and even how the post-war benefits would be distributed... Su Ling landed on the bluestone square at the foot of Tianqing Peak. He didn't rush back to Lingyun Villa but first sent messages to Lu Tao, Song Moting, and others he hadn't contacted in a long time.

After just a moment, a blazing sword light rushed over in a flurry.

"Holy crap! Su Ling, you brat, you're finally back!"

The voice arrived before the person.

Lu Tao's familiar loud voice echoed through the square, causing many passing Disciples to look over.

"Seventy years! You brat, you've been gone for seventy years!"

The sword light dissipated, revealing Lu Tao's face, which was filled with frustration.

But in the next second, his eyes widened, and the expression on his face turned from frustration to disbelief. "I—holy crap! I worked my butt off just to reach the Late Nascent Soul Stage... and you're already at Peak Nascent Soul?!"

"The Heavenly Dao is unfair!"

"Why?!"

"Why is it that you go out for a stroll and come back at Peak Nascent Soul?!"

"I told Revered Master long ago that we can't just work behind closed doors; I should have been let out to roam!"

"Waaaah..."

Watching him jump around and wail in front of him, Su Ling couldn't help but press a hand to his forehead.

He grabbed him and pulled him toward the villa, scolding him via voice transmission, "I was almost struck to death by lightning when I condensed my Nascent Soul. Do you think this cultivation was picked up for free? It was traded for with my life!"

"Gah?"

Lu Tao choked mid-curse.

Glancing left and right, he also realized this wasn't the place for a conversation. Suppressing the curiosity scratching at his heart like a cat, he grabbed Su Ling back, and the sword light rose again, flying straight to Lingyun Villa.

During the years Su Ling was away, this villa and cave dwelling had basically become Lu Tao's residence.

For no other reason than the concentration of Spiritual Qi here was far beyond what his own cave dwelling could compare to.

Familiar with the path, he used a token to open the cave dwelling's Restriction, and the two sat down in the guest courtyard where Lu Tao usually stayed.

As soon as Lu Tao sat down, he couldn't wait to ask, "Quick, tell me, what exactly happened?"

"Sigh, it's quite bizarre..."

Su Ling sighed softly and briefly recounted the danger he encountered during his tribulation.

Although his Revered Master and Grandmaster had warned him not to spread the word, Lu Tao was not an outsider to him.

Moreover, the seven star soul settling pagoda the other had gifted him was also destroyed in that Lightning Tribulation; in all fairness, he owed him an explanation.

"Hiss... Purple Cloud Yin Fiend Tribulation?!"

After hearing this, Lu Tao sucked in a breath of cold air, his face full of shock. "What kind of heaven-defying, person-enraging thing did you do? Just condensing a Nascent Soul could attract a Golden Immortal Tribulation?"

"Bullshit!"

Su Ling laughed and cursed, casually filling the jade table with spirit fruits he had brought back from the Yunlan Realm. "I can't even bear to step on an ant; could I do that kind of thing?"

"Pfft!"

Lu Tao laughed out of sheer exasperation. "Are you even speaking human words? The great Azure Thunder Demonic Cultivator... can't bear to step on an ant, but when it comes to hacking people down, you're incredibly efficient!"

"Hahaha!"

The two looked at each other and couldn't help but laugh out loud.

The decades they hadn't seen each other hadn't diluted their friendship in the slightest; instead, the reunion added a bit more heartiness.

After the laughter, Lu Tao's expression turned slightly serious, and a hint of worry appeared in his eyes. "Su Ling, you're already at Peak Nascent Soul, not far from Soul Transformation... when you break through, will it trigger another Heavenly Tribulation?"

"Sigh."

As soon as these words were spoken, Su Ling felt the spirit fruit in his hand lose its flavor.

He shook his head and said helplessly, "I don't know either; I can only take it one step at a time."

"Don't be afraid, let's prepare more Spiritual Artifacts and Magic Treasures for Undergoing Tribulations, as well as life-saving Medicinal Pills."

Lu Tao took a big bite of the spirit fruit and said indistinctly but firmly, "I don't believe it; if you could survive last time even when underprepared, could you really fail next time?"

"Pui pui pui, what 'next time'! There won't be a next time!"

Su Ling's expression changed, and he reflexively grabbed a spirit fruit to stuff into Lu Tao's mouth.

Then, with a thought, he took a jade bottle from his storage jade ring and tossed it over. "This is a life-saving Immortal Pill bestowed by my Revered Master; keep it well."

"An Immortal Pill?"

Lu Tao swallowed the fruit in his mouth with difficulty, pulled out the stopper, and took a peek. A surge of majestic vitality instantly filled the cave dwelling.

"Holy cow! A Rank Seven Immortal Pill! You've struck it rich, brat!"

He grinned, quickly plugged the bottle, and deftly tucked it into his robe. "Then I won't be polite with you. Thanks!"

With the friendship between the two, a few external items weren't worth being overly polite about.