215: The ceremony ended, the Golden Elixir technique

Seeing the Storage Ring float out, Midnight Gao Sou's eyes nearly popped out.

With a flick of his spiritual energy, he caught the Storage Ring.

There were no Restrictions, so he could directly probe it with his Spiritual Sense.

Upon checking, Midnight Gao Sou almost fell off his seat.

The contents inside were truly luxurious.

"Fellow Daoist, how is it? Are you satisfied?"

Xiao Baoshan laughed heartily, still drinking his wine nonchalantly.

Midnight Gao Sou no longer cared; he was still immersed in the Storage Ring.

It was packed full of Heaven And Earth Treasure, and there were even some Medicinal Pills sealed in jade boxes. The total value was beyond imagination.

The Cultivators from Heshui Prefecture and Qingling Sect outside were all settled in their places.

Then, three figures flew from a distance and landed in front of the Great Love Sect's mountain gate.

All three wore Duan Kong Cave's white robes. They appeared young, but clearly exuded a terrifying aura different from Immortal Foundation Cultivators, indicating they had used age-preserving techniques.

The three first glanced at the immortal boat sent by Heshui Prefecture, then swept their eyes over Si Qianyuan and the others.

Then, they took a step and landed in front of Midnight Gao Sou.

"I am Xiang He."

"Xiang Yuan."

"I am Sect Leader Xiang Qing of Void Severing Cave."

The three briefly introduced themselves, presented their congratulatory gifts, and handed over a Storage Ring, then grandly found seats and sat down.

Xiang He even sat beside Xiao Baoshan and drank with him, as if they were old acquaintances.

Midnight Gao Sou frowned deeply, increasingly feeling that the proceedings were amiss. None of these people seemed to put him in their eyes; they were merely going through the motions.

However, Duan Kong Cave had sent three Golden Core Experts, which was a grand enough display. No one could find fault, nor would they dare to.

Midnight Gao Sou's Spiritual Sense probed into the Storage Ring, and upon careful inspection, all his complaints vanished instantly.

Because inside were neither medicinal ingredients nor Medicinal Pills, but the most precious Legacy!

The entire Storage Ring had been modified by a secret technique, filled with Legacies directly imprinted by a Golden Core Expert. Qi Refining Cultivators would gain nothing from it, Immortal Foundation Cultivators could barely grasp some superficial knowledge, and only Golden Core Cultivators could accept the Legacy with their stronger Spiritual Sense.

Midnight Gao Sou almost wanted to immediately go into seclusion to comprehend it.

Without Star Fiend, his continued Cultivation would be incredibly difficult. He had never expected Duan Kong Cave to send him a subsequent Dao Lineage.

Midnight Gao Sou accepted the Storage Ring, looked up at Xiang He and the other two, all his complaints gone, replaced only by excitement.

Soon, Midnight Gao Sou confirmed that the Great Jiang Empress was truly not coming, and only then did he officially begin the sacrifice.

The offerings, already prepared, were presented to Heaven and Earth. Midnight Gao Sou refined them with his Divine Ability, causing a surge of Spiritual Qi waves around him. All the Great Love Sect Disciples and attending guests breathed in the Spiritual Qi with it, all feeling the grace of the Immortal Master.

Midnight Gao Sou stepped into the air, recited a passage, completed the entire ritual, and finally, following ancient rites, was to bestow a Daoist title upon himself.

Midnight Gao Sou had already decided, and he declared in a booming voice:

"Daoist title, Midnight."

His voice, amplified by spiritual energy, spread in all directions... "Immortal Master Midnight, is this grand ceremony a bit perfunctory? Why do I feel that the guests from the Three Great Sects... are not very enthusiastic?"

After the ceremony, Jiang Yezi and others gathered with Midnight Gao Sou, inquiring about the situation.

In their minds, the sacrificial ceremony would surely be very lively, gathering thousands or even tens of thousands of people, with a magnificent display, possibly even moving Heaven and Earth and creating various auspicious phenomena.

And because it required invoking Heaven and Earth, Golden Core Experts would come as guests, and they would intervene at the appropriate time.

This was not a figment of Jiang Yezi and others' imagination; it was a long-standing rumor in the Cultivation World. It was said that during the sacrificial ceremony, many junior Cultivators would benefit, even achieving a Breakthrough to Immortal Foundation within a single day.

However, at this ceremony, no Golden Core Expert from Heshui Prefecture came, and the other two Sects simply sat and drank wine and ate food, offering no help at all.

Midnight Gao Sou's expression also turned somewhat ugly, but he quickly composed himself and, after a moment of contemplation, said:

"According to Star Fiend, the sacrificial ceremony is very important. In the ideal scenario, one would suppress the Breakthrough phenomena until the sacrificial ceremony, then release it all at once, using it as a foundation to communicate with Heaven and Earth and bring down various blessings.

"However, it is said that the Heavenly Dao has changed now. It no longer bestows blessings, nor are there Lightning Tribulations. The sacrificial ceremony has become merely a ritual, simply to declare one's Daoist title and prove to all that one has achieved Golden Core, and will henceforth be an Immortal Master."

Hearing the explanation, Jiang Yezi and others suddenly understood.

However, Midnight Gao Sou and the others did not know that in this era, although the sacrificial ceremony was merely a formality to declare one's Daoist title, it still held a very important function.

During the sacrificial process, besides the new Immortal Master needing to refine the main offering for Heaven and Earth, causing a Spiritual Qi wave for the participants to benefit from...

The Golden Core Experts attending the ceremony would also release various Heaven And Earth Treasure, or True Intent insights, as a gesture of goodwill towards the new Immortal Master.

At this time, the preciousness of the released treasures was equivalent to the degree of goodwill. Blood alliances and superficial relationships often had essential differences, so the sacrificial ceremony became a symbol of power relations.

And at Midnight Gao Sou's sacrificial ceremony, not a single Golden Core Expert released treasures or helped to stir the Spiritual Qi wave.

This was a very dangerous signal for the Great Love Sect... "This Immortal Master Midnight seems a bit... too lacking."

Elder Xiang He of Duan Kong Cave pondered for a moment before speaking.

Xiang Yuan chuckled beside him: "He is indeed a bit lacking, but didn't we give him everything? Fearing he might grow suspicious, we even had Xiao Baoshan help deliver it."

Xiang Qing remained silent, not joining the conversation at all.

However, the two Elders seemed to ignore him, their Sect Master, and discussed amongst themselves:

"Our Sect Master is a Seventh-Grade Colored Core, nurtured for several hundred years, only now barely usable. Immortal Master Midnight is merely a Ninth-Grade Shattered Core; can he substitute?"

"Originally, he couldn't, but there's a problem with the Cultivation Technique he practices. From beginning to end, it's designed for Alchemy. Compared to our Sect Master, he'll be easier to refine."

"But he's still only a Ninth-Grade Shattered Core. Even if he's successfully refined, can he be used? Would one dare to use him?"

"That's why we sent him so many Heaven And Earth Treasure, and subsequent Cultivation Techniques, enough to make him a better Great Pill."

Xiang Yuan finished speaking, then laughed heartily: "Xiang He, you must remember, the art of refining human pills is profound. While the Realm level and the quality of the Immortal Foundation and Golden Core are indeed important, what's more crucial is suitability. Immortal Master Midnight is most suitable for our Old Ancestor's use."

Xiang Qing remained silent for a long time before interjecting: "I only have one question: the Qingming Medicine Forging Art lost its Golden Core Method long ago, even during Star Fiend's era. This path should have been broken; how was it reconnected? And how was it passed to Immortal Master Midnight?"

Xiang Yuan's lips curled up: "Because Immortal Master Midnight was not the first Extraterrestrial Demon Star Fiend found after leaving the grotto-heaven. The Golden Core portion of the Qingming Medicine Forging Art was passed to him by that Extraterrestrial Demon. That person seemed to be called... Director Li Shaohua? What he was called doesn't matter; anyway, these Extraterrestrial Demons just pick random names.

"He gave the Qingming Medicine Forging Art to Star Fiend, and I don't know what he exchanged for it. Later, Star Fiend traded the Golden Core scroll with the Old Ancestor, and we then gave the Golden Core scroll back to Midnight. Heh, this Great Pill is destined to be made, whether he wants it or not."