Danfeng sent your thousand Spirit Stones

Debate Platform, known as the arena for debating the Dao.

But it's not free to use, at least not for non-members of the Dao Sword Sect.

When non-members participate in the Debate Platform, they have to pay a fee. If they win, the deposit goes to the Dao Sword Sect as a cost for maintaining the platform; if they lose, the deposit goes to the disciples of the Dao Sword Sect as a reward.

Unfair?

Indeed, it's unfair.

This is their territory, so why should they treat an outsider fairly?

Apart from non-members of the Dao Sword Sect participating in the Debate Platform, there is another way to engage with it, and that is through challenge matches.

It is a policy implemented by the Dao Sword Sect to encourage its disciples to be brave in combat. The specific rules don't need to be explained in detail, but in simple terms, it involves lower-level practitioners challenging higher-level ones. If the challenger wins, they are rewarded, and if they achieve consecutive victories, the rewards become greater.

This is what Li Shiyin and Long Qiqi have learned in the past few days and what they are currently engaged in.

"So, you've been provoking and causing trouble here every day for the past few days, and then getting into fights everywhere, tarnishing... Dan Peak, right?!" Qin Ran said.

"It's not really provoking. Actually, only the first one was lured onto the platform by my little trick, but the rest were voluntary, either for the sake of face or reputation. It has nothing to do with us..."

As Long Qiqi spoke, she suddenly remembered something important. "Oh no, I forgot to collect the spirit stones this time! The prize money for winning eight consecutive matches! It's worth over a thousand spirit stones!"

"Collect... collect what?!" Qin Ran scolded. "Is Dan Peak so poor? Is it necessary for you to degrade yourselves like this? Are you saying that without these one thousand spirit stones, you won't be able to survive?!"

"Alright..." Long Qiqi had no choice but to put the matter aside.

"Is there nothing left at home?" Qin Ran walked up to a rice shop and asked Long Qiqi.

"We still have rice and flour, but I don't like eating them, and Shiyin doesn't like them either," Long Qiqi replied.

Qin Ran glanced at her and asked, "Then what do you like?"

"Meat!"

"Rotten meat, huh?" Qin Ran sarcastically commented.

"Don't mention that, we're still friends..."

"Give us two pounds of Zhishen spirit rice," Qin Ran said to the shop owner.

"Oh, it's you, fellow Daoist..." The owner smiled and greeted him.

Few cultivators indulged in worldly desires such as food, so there weren't many people buying rice, flour, and meat. Qin Ran was one of the few, and he had become familiar with the shop owner over time.

The owner asked, "Just Zhishen spirit rice?"

"Yes," Qin Ran nodded.

"Lately, there seems to be something wrong with Zhishen Valley. The quality of the spirit rice they sell is gradually deteriorating, and the amount I receive has been decreasing. I think it won't be long before you won't be able to buy Zhishen spirit rice on the market anymore." Since they were familiar with each other, the owner didn't play any tricks and instead engaged in idle chat with Qin Ran.

Upon hearing this, Qin Ran's heart skipped a beat. Casually, he asked, "Has anything interesting happened in Zhishen Valley lately?"

"No major events, just a bunch of minor ones. Everything is as usual," the rice shop owner replied. After packing the rice, he handed it to Qin Ran and said, "This is the amount equivalent to one spirit stone."

Qin Ran took the rice, reached into his spatial pouch, and then his expression changed...

He didn't have any spirit stones left!

His Qiankun Bag turned to ashes under the calamitous thunder, leaving nothing behind except two Thunder Tribulation Pills. Everything else was gone.

As for the temporary Qiankun Bags he had set aside, they only contained pills, formations, and techniques for later use, without any spirit stones.

He silently put the rice back on the counter and said to Long Qiqi, "The winnings from your consecutive victories, the fruits of your hard work, it's necessary to claim them."

"Huh?" Long Qiqi was taken aback.

In the end, Qin Ran decided to claim Li Shiyin's prize money. He bought rice and some other things before hurrying back with Long Qiqi. He still traveled by foot, refusing to fly, running along the way back to Dan Peak.

With one hand holding Chasing the Wind and the other holding Long Qiqi, he exuded a sense of desolation, like a middle-aged person who had become estranged, wandering in the wilderness with a child and a pet.

"Don't you know how to fly?" Long Qiqi asked curiously, tilting her head.

"How is that possible!" Qin Ran replied. "Walking is healthier. Flying around is not dignified and lacks decorum. It's not proper etiquette."

"Let me teach you a second lesson. What distinguishes humans from demonic beasts is rites and music. When rites collapse and music is in chaos, it signifies an era of turmoil."

"Oh!" Long Qiqi nodded, but she still didn't understand. "But flying... isn't it cool?"

Qin Ran pretended not to hear.

"I've never seen you fly. Could it be that you really can't fly?" Long Qiqi continued, "It's quite interesting for a cultivator not to be able to fly..."

With Long Qiqi nestled in his armpit, her little mouth kept chattering, but Qin Ran acted as if he didn't hear, his expression somewhat unpleasant.

They arrived at the wooden house in front of Dan Peak. Qin Ran tossed Long Qiqi onto the grass and gave her a sinister glance before going to find Li Shiyin.

"Shiyin? Shiyin!" He placed Chasing the Wind gently on the rocking chair in front of the house and shouted loudly.

"Shiyin is in seclusion and not available." Li Shiyin's voice sounded from the small cottage under the old locust tree.

The room was specially arranged by Qin Ran for Long Qiqi and Chasing the Wind, serving as Li Shiyin's cultivation place. The room was equipped with an array of spiritual gathering formations and starlight formations, making it the most suitable place for Li Shiyin's cultivation.

Li Shiyin covered her eyes like a child playing hide-and-seek, feeling as if she had disappeared. This made Qin Ran chuckle, and he hurriedly walked over, placing his hand on the door of the Star Soul Chamber, about to push it open...

"What if she really is in seclusion?"

He wondered, and in the end, he didn't push it open.

If Li Shiyin was truly in seclusion, pushing the door open would disturb her. If her spiritual energy went astray or she fell into madness as a result, what would they do?

Although the possibility was small, it wasn't nonexistent. Qin Ran didn't dare to gamble.

He clenched his fist and turned away.

In fact, Li Shiyin, inside the chamber, leaned against the door. She listened to the sounds outside, her heart beating like a drum...

Qin Ran had specially set up the Star Soul Chamber so that the outside couldn't perceive what was happening inside, but it was easy to sense the external environment from within. This setting was to guard against surprise attacks during seclusion.

So Li Shiyin knew that Qin Ran was right outside.

This scene reminded her of when she was a child, when she made a mistake and hid with Li Shiwen, fearing that their father would find them.

"Master is so scary!" she murmured.

Feeling that the master had gone far away, she turned and walked to the chair indoors, picking up a manual to read.

The manual was called "Star Shadow Sword Technique," a martial art that taught how to utilize the power of stars in battle. Its style leaned towards elegance and agility, with references to shadows and spirits. It was purchased by the master and seemed to be a technique created during the Nascent Soul stage.

Li Shiyin didn't particularly like this style of sword technique, but after all, it was a high-level technique of a cultivator. It wouldn't hurt to take a look and learn a bit.

Although...

As she kept reading, she started feeling sleepy.

She didn't know how much time had passed, but Li Shiyin, holding the book, had already completely closed her eyes and nodded off while sitting on the chair.

At that moment, the master's voice suddenly came from outside:

"Shiyin, it's time to eat! Today we have braised trotters and lean meatballs. They are so delicious!!"

Time to eat?

Li Shiyin jolted awake as if she could already smell the aroma of the food. Her mouth watered, and with a slurp, she tossed the book onto the table. Before the book even landed on the table, she was already outside.

She arrived outside and glanced around. There was a square table on the grass, with four or five dishes exuding a delightful fragrance. On the other side, Long Qiqi was holding a pot of steaming hot rice above her head, walking out from the living room, and...

Standing by the table, her master looked at her with a serious expression.

"It's over!"

Li Shiyin lowered her head, feeling pitiful and helpless.