"Disciple... I just want a pine cone..."
"A pine cone?!"
"Daring to ask for a pine cone to refine a ’Foundation Establishment Pill’, what’s next, will you demand the core of the tree when refining a ’Nascent Soul Pill’?"
Even though the pine cone had plenty to spare, Elder Mo Song was strongly condemning Lin Jing for his audacity in making such a request.
Well! It hadn’t even asked for the Longevity Blood, and the other party was already eyeing its fruits!
"Elder..."
"Heh." Elder Mo Song sneered, "Wanting a pine cone isn’t impossible, you just need to do one thing."
"Hmm? Please tell me, Elder." Lin Jing was overjoyed, as long as there was room to negotiate, everything else could be discussed!
"You’ve been cultivating until now, yet you haven’t killed anyone."
"You’re only at the Qi Cultivation Stage now, and you close yourself off in seclusion for three years. This is not what’s most terrifying. What’s most terrifying is that your cultivation hasn’t advanced even a bit. I can’t imagine how long you’ll seclude yourself after reaching the Foundation Establishment Stage!"
"I reckon a hundred years will pass quickly. Before I leave, I must ensure you can stand on your own, only then I can leave with peace of mind, as a way to repay the life-saving grace of your second-generation Sect Leader! So... I want you to kill to temper yourself!"
"Killing your own kind is a completely different feeling compared to hunting demon beasts. Kill at least a hundred people, and I’ll give you a pine cone to aid in your Foundation Establishment!"
"..." Elder Mo Song’s demand made Lin Jing fall silent.
Kill a hundred people...
"Oh, and it must be Cultivators! You must kill them with your own hands, without the help of Pet Beasts," Elder Mo Song added.
...
"Killing people..."
The condition to obtain the pine cone made Lin Jing have a headache.
In the past, regardless of the type of combat, he had never harbored murderous intent towards humans. Even when facing foreign Snowfield Cultivators, he only critically wounded them, and it was Xu Zhizhi who delivered the final blow.
Elder Mo Song was now asking him to kill a hundred people, which posed a dilemma for Lin Jing. However, regarding the pine cone... his desire was overwhelming.
"In the Task Hall of the Beast Taming Sect, tasks to eradicate mountain bandits are often seen. If they are bandits who kill for treasure, or Demon Cultivators from the Yin Corpse Sect who kidnap and traffic people, killing them is no issue, and I wouldn’t hesitate."
"However, the Ancient Domain is said to be the most orderly of the Nine Ancient Countries, sitting right under the Imperial City. Where would I find mountain bandits or demon cultivators to eradicate?"
"Could it really be necessary to take up Gao Sheng’s suggestion and form a team to storm across domains to destroy Demon Cultivator bases?" Lin Jing mused to himself while walking through the academy.
Suddenly, his eyes lit up as he thought of something.
Lin Jing harnessed his Qi and flew towards the location of Gao Sheng’s abode. When he arrived, he happened to see Gao Sheng feeding a Dragon Ascending Pill to a Dragon-Horned Horse.
"Eat, eat it!"
Gao Sheng spoke as he forcefully fed, but the horse resisted fiercely.
"Huh?" Gao Sheng, who was feeding the horse, noticed Lin Jing’s sudden visit, immediately tidied his clothes, flicked the saliva from his hands, and greeted enthusiastically, "Brother Lin? What’s up? We just parted ways, why did you come again?"
He suddenly became wary.
"You’re not still thinking about my horse, are you!" ᴛʜɪs ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ɪs ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ʙʏ novel_fіre.net
Lin Jing was speechless, as indeed Gao Sheng’s Dragon-Horned Horse had a commendable bloodline and the potential to form a Demon Pill. But now, with the Kylin-blooded Dragon Koi, he naturally wouldn’t covet it as he once did.
"Brother Gao, have you ever killed someone?" Lin Jing asked bluntly.
Gao Sheng was stunned and reminisced, "Of course, I killed someone. In my early years, my father wanted to train me to be an outstanding Demon Exterminator, so at six, he had me execute a Qi Cultivation Stage death row convict."
"That’s it!" Lin Jing took a deep breath and said, "Do you know any channels that could send me to the mortal offices or Demon Extermination Bureau, to work as an executioner for heinously criminal death row convicts?"
"Huh?" Gao Sheng was dumbfounded, "Have you gone mad!"
"Why do you want to do such dirty and exhausting work?"
He became wary again, reasoning and analyzing, "No, something’s odd. Did you somehow acquire a Demon Dao technique centered on ’killing intent’ or ’fiendish aura’?"
Lin Jing rolled his eyes, "How could that be? I have the Ice Soul Gu; I wouldn’t look at such low-tier Demon Dao techniques."
"True, those who specialize in killing intent and fiendish aura were mostly gathered in third-rate demon sects long ago." Gao Sheng agreed.
"How can those third-rate demon sects, which were eradicated by Ancient Countries, compare to the Grand Dao of the Gu Cultivators."
"At least the ancestor of the Gu God Sect was at the Dao Inquiry Stage. Were it not for the severing of the Immortal Path, they would’ve been fully capable of ascending."
"It’s unrelated to Demon Dao, it’s just that a senior of mine feels my cultivation path is too tranquil and wants me to hone myself through killing." Lin Jing clarified.
Gao Sheng furrowed his brow, "Killing? It’s not like killing demon beasts, it easily ensnares one with fiendish aura and killing intent, affecting the state of mind and hindering cultivation."
"Hmm... But if it’s just a shallow attempt, and then using a special pill to dispel the fiendish aura, it should be manageable."
After some thought, he said, "I’ll think of a way. Give me a few days, and wait for my word."
"Thank you." Lin Jing knew Gao Sheng was reliable. Having connections truly matters when away from home, as the difficult task from Elder Mo Song seemed resolved.
Just at this moment, the Dragon-Horned Horse spoke up.
"Is there any more of that pill from earlier? I thought you were about to execute me, but it turned out to be a treasure! My bloodline purity enhanced greatly!"
"Haven’t I been saying it’s a treasure, a treasure!" Gao Sheng, looking at the ungrateful Dragon-Horned Horse, said, "Can I not tell if it’s a treasure or a poison?"
The Dragon-Horned Horse said, "I was just worried you couldn’t tell."
"Heh..." Lin Jing chuckled beside them, "Brother Gao, to thank you, in the future, you’ll have all the Dragon Ascending Pills you need. As long as you provide the main ingredient, ’Dragon Blood,’ I’ll prepare the rest of the ingredients and refine them free of charge for you."
"Really?!" Gao Sheng was extremely happy, "Does Dragon-Horse’s Dragon Blood suffice?"
Dragon-Horse: ?
"A bit too weak... Must be at the Demon Core Stage cultivation level."
Gao Sheng regretfully shook his head, then earnestly said, "Deal, deal, rest assured and go back, within seven days, I’ll sort it out for you!"
Having received Gao Sheng’s assistance, Lin Jing returned to his abode at ease, continuing to refine Dragon Ascending Pills with the Dragon Koi, enhancing his mastery of the Alchemy Dao to lay the groundwork for refining the Longevity Foundation Establishment Pill...
......
Several days later.
Thanks to the clever promotional efforts of Xu Zhizhi, the result of the battle between the Godly Body Wang Xiao and the Dragon Koi had become well-known throughout half of Hidden Dragon City.
In a teahouse, several cultivators were lounging and listening to music, chatting while sipping tea.
"Have you heard? The Wang Family’s Qilin Child, who was close to making it onto the ’Heaven’s Chosen List’, actually lost to a Dragon Koi at the ninth level of Qi Cultivation!"
"How is that possible? Are you drunk? Isn’t the Godly Body already at the Foundation Establishment?"
"It was a battle with suppressing his cultivation level! Although that Dragon Koi’s cultivation wasn’t high, its bloodline was incredibly formidable, reaching the ’King Level’. If it were just this, it wouldn’t stand a chance against a same-level Divine Body, but unlike ordinary Demon King bloodlines, this Dragon Koi possesses pure Dragon Race royal blood, even the Divine Body struggles against it!"
"A young Dragon King?! Is it a pet demon of some academy professor?"
"No, it’s not! Do you still remember Lin Jing from the Beast Taming Sect? That Dragon Koi was nurtured by him using a special pill and Hidden Dragon Secret Technique, cultivated in seclusion for three years! It’s said that he used all the fortune accumulated from the Hidden Dragon Secret Technique on raising the dragon pet, planning to form a contract after his Foundation Establishment."
"I’ve also heard that the Beast Taming Sect was sealed, and Lin Jing plans to rebuild a Dragon Taming Sect, recruiting throughout the academy to become the Sect Leader himself."