Chapter 101: The Reemergence of the Demon Sect

“Junior Brother Song.”

Lin Qing’s eye sockets were deeply sunken, and at some point, a golden vertical line had appeared on his forehead.

Perhaps it was the result of cultivating some secret technique...

Song Yan asked with concern, “Senior Brother Lin, you…”

“Nothing serious,” Lin Qing waved his hand. “A few days ago, I was eager for a breakthrough and rushed things a bit…”

“I made a mistake in my cultivation, but it’s fine now.”

“Oh, that’s good to hear.” Song Yan nodded.

“This is your first time coming for the inner sect promotion, isn’t it?”

Lin Qing welcomed Song Yan into the small courtyard of his cave dwelling.

He glanced with interest at the sword case on Song Yan’s back but said nothing.

“Make yourself at home, come in and sit.”

Song Yan felt a bit embarrassed and said, “Senior Brother Lin, please forgive me. A few days ago, I was sent by the sect to attend the Spring Festival at Beiya Mountain.”

“I only just returned to the sect a few days ago.”

Lin Qing’s expression showed sudden realization. “Oh…”

Then a hint of regret appeared on his face. “It’s a pity that during those days, I was the one who made a cultivation mistake, so Brother Lu Ziye took my place.”

“Otherwise, I would have liked to go and see the world.”

Until now, Lin Qing hadn’t mentioned Lu Ziye, but once he did, Song Yan recalled that Brother Lu had once exposed some secrets about Lin Qing in front of them.

Thinking of this refined and gentle Senior Brother Lin, who was devoted to Senior Sister Qin, Song Yan couldn’t help but smile slightly.

Perhaps sensing Song Yan’s strange expression, Lin Qing asked, “Junior Brother Song, what’s wrong?”

“Nothing, nothing,” Song Yan replied hastily.

“Here, have some tea.”

Lin Qing placed a simple tea set on the table inside the cave dwelling and poured a pot of spirit tea.

“Speak freely. Why have you come to visit me? It can’t be just to chat idly, can it?”

“...”

Only then did Song Yan reveal the purpose of his visit: “Senior Brother Lin, to be honest, I came to ask you something.”

“Do you know anything about the Breaking Realm Pill?”

“Breaking Realm Pill?” Lin Qing scoffed. “You brat, I haven’t even broken through to the ninth level of Qi Refining. If there was any news, why would I tell you?”

“Heh heh...” Song Yan forced a laugh. “Just trying my luck.”

“However…”

Lin Qing suddenly fell into deep thought, then after a moment, spoke slowly.

“I do know some information, and I can share it with you.”

“Because it’s not a secret, and this news will soon spread throughout the sect.”

“So, there’s no harm telling you beforehand.”

Song Yan listened quietly, though a bit puzzled.

“I have some reliable sources, so I got this information early. Besides, I wasn’t planning to go myself.”

“A few days ago, large numbers of demonic cultivators appeared along the border between Chu Kingdom and Qi Kingdom.”

“Large numbers of demonic cultivators?”

Song Yan was startled.

He had encountered quite a few demonic cultivators before, but they were always small groups of two or three, hardly a threat.

They were probably just random inheritances from chance encounters.

But if demonic cultivators appeared in large groups, the cultivation worlds of various countries would need to be on high alert.

Song Yan’s knowledge of demonic cultivators wasn’t extensive; most of it came from Brother Lu Ziye’s endless chatter.

Some came from conversations with Senior Brother Yu Zhen after he slew the Yellow Robe Daoist.

“That Yellow Robe Daoist seems to have originated from a sect of demonic cultivators called the ‘Yellow Springs Path’…”

It seemed that demonic cultivators were divided into many branches.

For example, the three early Qi Refining demonic cultivators outside Shiliang Town were quite different from that Yellow Robe Daoist.

Though they were somewhat similar to Jiang Hui, the True Immortal from Peach Blossom Dock.

Elsewhere was unclear, but in Chu Kingdom, large-scale appearances of demonic cultivators had not occurred for many years.

Occasionally, a few troublemakers would appear but were quickly slain.

“The Qi Kingdom has sent cultivators to station at the border, but since it mainly concerns Chu Kingdom, the six great sects are all dispatching people.”

“The border between Chu and Qi Kingdom…”

Song Yan thought for a moment: “Changping?”

“Yes, Changping.”

Lin Qing exhaled softly, “On the surface, it’s just a rotation of duty shifts to guard Changping, but in reality, it’s hard to say if there won’t be clashes with demonic cultivators.”

“This mission lasts a long time and carries high potential risk. Plus, the spiritual energy in Changping is quite scarce…”

At this, Song Yan understood perfectly.

“If it were just ordinary mission rewards, few disciples would be willing to go.”

“So this time, the six great sects have jointly set up spiritual resource rewards for this mission, one of which is the Breaking Realm Pill.”

“The mission lasts two years, divided into four rotations. If you participate in two rotations, you’ll have enough merit to exchange for one Breaking Realm Pill.”

“Of course, if you discover demonic cultivators’ movements or slay any, you can gain extra merit and exchange the pill earlier.”

“...”

“I see…”

Song Yan nodded. “But Senior Brother Lin, if inner sect disciples take part in this mission, wouldn’t that prevent them from participating in the sect’s grand competition?”

He vaguely remembered the inner sect grand competition was about to begin.

He was an outer sect disciple himself and couldn’t participate anyway, but he was curious.

Lin Qing shook his head. “Not exactly.”

“There’s a big change in this year’s inner sect grand competition. On one hand, the inner sect grand competition has actually been canceled…”

His words shocked Song Yan, whose eyes widened.

“Originally, the competition was limited to the inner sect, but now it’s open to the entire sect.”

“The inner sect disciples’ original contests remain unchanged, but outer sect disciples can also compete similarly. Those who succeed can win the Breaking Realm Pill, break through to late Qi Refining, and be admitted into the inner sect.”

Upon hearing this, Song Yan first felt sorry for the brothers and sisters who traveled far to prepare for the grand competition.

Then he felt a flicker of joy.

In this way, even if he didn’t participate in the Changping mission, he still had a chance to obtain the pill.

Just as he was calculating in his mind, Lin Qing poured cold water on his hopes.

“On the other hand… the sect-wide grand competition has been postponed due to the appearance of demonic cultivators.”

“Postponed? Until when?”

“Postponed until the mission ends,” Lin Qing said with a bitter smile, “That is, two years later.”

“...”

Song Yan sighed softly, thinking how these demonic cultivators were always causing trouble.

“Alright then… Senior Brother Lin, do you know when this border mission will start?”

“It’s still early. All the mechanisms and arrangements are still being planned. When the mission officially begins, it might be a few months from now.”

“I understand.”

There was no other choice.

Taking a sip of the spirit tea, its faintly bitter fragrance slightly dispelled the gloom in his heart.

After some more polite conversation, Song Yan stood up to take his leave.

“Thank you, Senior Brother Lin, for the information.”

“No problem. Since it will be made public anyway, better to let you know early as a personal favor.”

“In the future, Junior Brother Song, when you flourish on the Immortal Path, don’t forget this small kindness from your senior.”

“Hahaha!”

Senior Brother Lin was still so fond of joking.

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