111: Chapter 111 Sixth Disciple

"Alright, come down now."

Ling Hao patted Chi Wanhe's back.

Chi Wanhe reluctantly slid down from Ling Hao's embrace, immediately pouting in complaint once her feet hit the ground.

"Revered Master! Why did you send Old Ancestor Shuying to follow us? We could have handled it ourselves!"

Ling Hao lightly flicked her smooth forehead with his finger.

"Wasn't it for the safety of you three little ancestors? Once you leave the three-thousand-li territory of the Moonshadow Sect and lose the blessing of the Grotto-Heaven's power, you three are just weak little chicks at the Golden Core Stage!"

"Since when is the Golden Core Stage weak! We can slaughter Tier 3 Erosion Beasts at will!"

Chi Wanhe covered her forehead, stomping her feet in indignant protest.

Just as Ling Hao said, although this mission to suppress the Erosion Tide was ostensibly led by his three Personal Disciples—Chi Wanhe, Qin Zhaoxue, and Du Yuqing—Chi Shuying of the Nascent Soul Stage had actually been hiding in the shadows to prevent any accidents.

After all, once they were far from the Sect's sphere of influence, they would revert to their original Golden Core Realm. Facing potentially powerful Erosion Beasts or unexpected changes carried no small risk.

"Tell me, how did the suppression go this time?"

Ling Hao looked at the three women and asked seriously.

"Reporting to Revered Master,"

Chi Wanhe rushed to answer, her small face full of excitement.

"We won! For three thousand li west of the Qing River, basically all the clusters of Erosion Beasts and Erosion Demons we could sense have been wiped clean! The Old Ancestor didn't even have to do much!"

"Mhm,"

Qin Zhaoxue gave a gentle smile and added, "The process was quite smooth. It's just that the Erosion Beasts we encountered this time had increasingly strange forms and were rather difficult to deal with. Fortunately, Third Junior Sister's physique is peerless; she blocked them head-on many times, buying us time to cast our spells."

Du Yuqing nodded silently from the side, effectively confirming the statement.

Chi Wanhe took over the conversation again, her elegant brows furrowing slightly.

"And the number of Erosion Beasts... there really are more and more of them! We followed the path where the erosion qi was densest and almost pushed all the way to the Golden Sands Land of Heavenly Fire and Earthly Flame. The erosion qi there was so thick it wouldn't disperse, and the Erosion Beasts were literally surging out like a tide..."

"We stayed there for half a month and finally cleared the Erosion Tide in the Golden Sands Land."

She paused. "Later, several Sect Masters from Liuyun Temple, the Yongyue Sect, and the Yunlai Sect said they could work together to handle the remaining Tier 2 Erosion Beasts elsewhere and told us we didn't need to stay any longer. That's when we headed back."

Speaking of Liuyun Temple, Chi Wanhe remembered something.

"By the way, Revered Master, that Disciple from Liuyun Temple named Liu Sisi is actually quite impressive. Her sword techniques are superb. Working with our Moonshadow Sect's Junior Sisters, she even killed a Tier 3 Erosion Beast!"

"Sister Sisi?!"

A crisp voice filled with pleasant surprise suddenly came from the side.

Chi Wanhe and the other two looked toward the source of the voice and saw their Fourth Junior Sister, Lu Changning, leading a pretty, delicate young girl in a light green cloth dress who looked a bit timid.

Lu Changning really didn't know where to take Xia Yingying next, so she simply brought her directly before their Revered Master.

Standing under everyone's gaze, Xia Yingying appeared somewhat restrained, her small hands twisting the hem of her faded clothes. Her figure was slender and frail, like a small lotus blooming after the rain, carrying a sense of unworldly purity.

Chi Wanhe and the others felt that this girl's eyes were as clear as a bottomless pool and her aura was incredibly pure, like a mountain spring. They couldn't help but feel a sense of liking for her.

"That's right," Chi Wanhe nodded, "it's Junior Sister Liu Sisi from Liuyun Temple. You know her?"

"Yes!" Xia Yingying nodded vigorously, her round eyes lighting up as her previous restraint was largely diluted by gratitude.

"It's all thanks to Sister Sisi! I lost my way on the road and was almost killed by Erosion Beasts. It was Sister Sisi who saved me! She didn't look down on me for being clumsy and even escorted me all the way to Jiangyang City, telling me in detail how to get to Liuling City... If not for Sister Sisi, I might never have found the Moonshadow Sect..."

"Liu Sisi... it's her..."

A look of reminiscence appeared in Ling Hao's eyes; that blue and red figure in the hall that day and the flowing Sword Qi seemed to surface before him once more.

And... Ling Hao's gaze fell upon Xia Yingying. These two actually had a connection.

Xia Yingying also looked up at Ling Hao. Was this Senior Sister Lu's Revered Master? He looked both majestic and... gentle?

On the way here, she had chatted with Senior Sister Lu and found that the other woman had a soft personality and was easily embarrassed, yet cared for her very much. The two of them got along very well. Even... their figures were strangely similar?

A strong thought suddenly surged in Xia Yingying's heart.

She wanted to be under the same Revered Master as Senior Sister Lu!

She also firmly believed that if she could join the True Venerable's Sect, she would definitely be able to increase her cultivation faster and help Sister Xinxi sooner.

Thus, under the surprised gazes of everyone, Xia Yingying summoned her courage to face Ling Hao and bowed deeply. Her voice trembled slightly from nervousness but was exceptionally firm.

"Disciple Xia Yingying has long admired the Moonshadow Sect and wishes to take you as my Revered Master. I implore the True Venerable to accept me as your Disciple."

"Granted!"

Ling Hao agreed decisively.

Wild joy filled Xia Yingying's heart, and she could hardly contain her excitement. She turned and grabbed Lu Changning's hand, her eyes shining.

"Senior Sister Lu! This is wonderful! Now we're under the same Revered Master!"

Lu Changning also smiled, her eyes bright.

To the side, Chi Wanhe scratched her head, looking at this harmonious scene with a bit of confusion.

Did she just... get another little Junior Sister? This wasn't another person who was going to compete with her for Revered Master's attention, was it?!

At this moment, Yu Lingshuang finished her conversation with Chi Shuying and walked over together. Yu Lingshuang's expression was cold, but there was a hint of solemnity between her brows.

"Sect Master, although no Disciples were killed this time, in the process of suppressing the Erosion Tide, two hundred and seventeen Foundation Establishment Disciples had their Spiritual Artifacts destroyed, and five hundred and sixty-four were seriously injured and need to rest for a while."

Hearing this, Ling Hao's brow furrowed slightly.

This was indeed a problem that could not be ignored.

Thoughts raced through his mind. Unless... he had all the Disciples listed on the everlasting light tablet. When a true name was engraved on the tablet, the Soul would gain the chance for immortality.

But that wasn't realistic... and it couldn't be achieved overnight.

"Zero casualties..."

Ling Hao's gaze swept over the vibrant Disciples in the square, his tone low and firm.

"What I want is for every single Disciple of the Moonshadow Sect to stay alive! Not a single one can be missing!"

In this cruel world of immortal cultivation, top-tier combat power was certainly the pillar of a Sect, but the Foundation of the low-level Disciples was equally indispensable.

If he wanted the light of the Moonshadow Sect's erosion suppression to shine beyond the Qing State in the future, large-scale military conflicts would be almost unavoidable.

When that time came, how could those low-Realm Disciples survive the terrifying aftershocks of high-Realm Cultivators clashing?

Formations! A flash of inspiration struck Ling Hao. Only sophisticated combined-attack battle Formations could allow weak individuals to condense a power capable of contending with strong enemies!

Suddenly, Ling Hao turned his head to look.

A cold figure walked over from a distance; it was his fifth Disciple, Lin Xiwei. Seeing that her Eldest Senior Sister and the others had returned, she intended to come over for a look, while also having a matter to report to her Revered Master.

"Xiao Wei."

Ling Hao looked at her, his eyes filled with expectation.

"You've come at the right time. You possess extraordinary talent in the Dao of Formations, and as the Elder of the Array Pavilion, your responsibility is heavy. I hope you can carve out some energy from your daily affairs to diligently teach the Disciples under our Sect the study of combined-attack formations."

Lin Xiwei was slightly taken aback, a hint of struggle flashing through her clear eyes. She had also heard her Revered Master's words just now and understood the significance of this move.

Once she agreed, it meant that the time she spent researching more profound Formations and increasing her personal cultivation would be significantly compressed.

Wouldn't it be even harder to catch up to the footsteps of her Eldest Senior Sister and the others? But when Lin Xiwei met Ling Hao's eyes, which were filled with trust and hope, that bit of hesitation vanished instantly.

"Yes, Revered Master. Your Disciple will certainly do her utmost."

Lin Xiwei bowed and accepted the task, her voice clear and resonant.

"Mhm. I've troubled you."

Lin Xiwei raised her eyelids, and a rare, irrepressible gleam of excitement appeared on her habitually calm face.

"Revered Master, your Disciple... is about to face the Four-Nine Minor Heavenly Tribulation!"

Once she successfully crossed this tribulation and condensed her Golden Core, with her Yin-Yang Spiritual Root Foundation, she would surely condense a one-in-a-million Yin-Yang Infinite Golden Core! At that time, her cultivation speed would skyrocket again, and catching up to Eldest Senior Sister and the others would be just around the corner!