Letter from Sect Leader Han

Although the tree had produced three fruits, Lin Xiao could not bring himself to pick even one and store it in his private treasury for appraisal.

He was extremely curious about what effects the fruits borne by the Ten-Mile Peach Blossom Tree might have.

At the side, Yang Jinshu remembered the letter she had just received and took it out, handing it to Lin Xiao.

“Brother Xiao, this is a letter the Sect Leader of the Qinghe Sect had someone deliver to you. Since Han Weishu has joined our sect, they also sent us a gift.”

Lin Xiao accepted the letter and nodded.

“All right. Thank you, Aunt Yang. Just have the Finance Hall register and store the gift later.”

After telling Lin Xiao how Yu Jie had instructed her to open the letter, Yang Jinshu carried the large box sent by the Qinghe Sect to the Finance Hall.

Lin Xiao, meanwhile, opened the envelope and read the letter as he walked back.

He had originally assumed that the letter would be nothing more than a request for their sect to take good care of Han Weishu. Unexpectedly, its actual contents caught him completely off guard.

“Sect Master Lin, I hope this letter finds you well.

“Your sect’s reputation for gentlemanly conduct is known throughout the world. It is my great fortune that my daughter, Weishu, has been able to enter your sect and cultivate there, and this brings me immense comfort. I believe that she will grow considerably under your sect’s guidance. I thank your sect for taking care of her.

“I am not writing this letter to trouble Sect Master Lin on my daughter’s account. Rather, I have recently been thinking of a matter understood but left unspoken among the various sects of the Mortal Realm. Considering that your sect has only recently made its appearance in the world, I cannot help but wonder whether your inheritance has been preserved. Hence, I have taken the liberty of writing to you.

“This matter is of great importance. If your sect’s inheritance has been broken or there are things you do not understand, I, Han Shangyi, as the Sect Leader of the Qinghe Sect, sincerely invite Sect Master Lin of the Lingxian Sect to meet with me and discuss the matter in detail at a later date.”

…

After quickly reading the letter, Lin Xiao pondered for a moment before flicking his wrist lightly and using spiritual power to destroy the entire letter.

The contents of the letter had not been stated particularly clearly, but the meaning behind them was actually quite obvious.

When the letter mentioned “a matter understood but left unspoken among the various sects of the Mortal Realm,” the first thing Lin Xiao thought of was the campaign against the Huanyou Kingdom three years ago. The sects in the surrounding countries and regions had received the news and swiftly assembled an allied army.

That point had left such a deep impression on him mainly because the sects and nations had acted with astonishing speed.

In Lin Xiao’s view, matters involving multiple parties were the easiest to delay and the most troublesome to coordinate.

Even if everyone knew how vile the effects of Jishi were and hated it to the bone, they had still acted far too quickly.

Based on his own brief visit to the allied army’s base, the various sects had not been on particularly harmonious terms. Their shared hatred of Jishi alone should not have been enough to allow them to reach an understanding on all sorts of major and minor matters so swiftly, let alone achieve that degree of tacit cooperation.

However, if he connected that incident with Sect Leader Han’s unspoken implication…

Lin Xiao walked slowly along the green-covered path, his eyes lowered as he thought seriously.

If their sect wanted to establish business throughout the entire Mortal Realm and the cultivation world, it naturally had to integrate itself into the circles formed by the sects of the Mortal Realm as much as possible.

Clearly, although Sect Leader Han had expressed himself tactfully, he had already seen that the Lingxian Sect did not possess the so-called “inheritance understood but left unspoken” shared by the other sects. That was why he had gone out of his way to send this letter.

This was the goodwill that Sect Leader Han had extended to the Lingxian Sect after considering the matter from every angle.

Lin Xiao knew that if they wanted to firmly establish themselves among the sects of the Mortal Realm for the long term, he had to make this trip to meet with Sect Leader Han.

“Ah, but there really are too many things to deal with.” He let out a long sigh and muttered to himself.

Fortunately, this matter was not urgent. He could deal with it after finishing the plans currently occupying his attention.

With that thought, Lin Xiao headed toward the Formation Hall.

Recently, he had been studying a type of formation in his room: a spatial formation.

It was not a miniature spatial teleportation formation like the one used in the locking ring. Instead, it was a formation designed to expand space and construct a stable spatial structure.

Naturally, the space created in this manner could not compare to a small world in terms of complete independence. It was merely a sealed-off miniature space constructed through formations under the laws governing this world.

Such a formation was naturally extremely difficult to create. Although Lin Xiao, now at the Nascent Soul Realm, was already able to glimpse a trace of this world’s spatial laws, independently researching such a formation according to his current level was still exceptionally challenging.

Of course, if he relied on the system’s synthesis function, he could completely skip this most difficult step.

But Lin Xiao did not want to do that.

If something created through the system’s synthesis function could not be recreated by him or by the people of his sect, then what would happen if he ascended one day—or if the system suddenly disappeared?

Would that not leave his sect without any genuine ability to research or create anything?

Relying completely on any single external force could never be a path to long-term survival.

Carrying the three designs he had repeatedly refined and developed during this period, Lin Xiao plunged once more into a small, dark room within the Formation Hall.

The reason he had to design the plans in advance instead of designing and experimenting at the same time was mainly because the materials required for this formation were quite expensive.

Furthermore, he would need to replicate the formation many times. The Finance Hall had already done its best to support the project, but it was impossible for him to use the materials without restraint. Every bit that could be saved had to be saved.

Even a sect master had to learn how to manage the household frugally.

At the same time, in another alchemy room, Sun Yigao was also leafing through a thick volume.

Liao Pantu was beside him, listing all the medicinal ingredients he thought might be useful.

“Master, what do you think? If we use the roots and stems of the Huanchong Grass together with the pollen of the Yang-Enhancing Flower, and use the formula for the Spirit-Stabilizing Pill as the foundation, could it have an effect on repairing the dantian?” Sun Yigao pointed at the book in his hands as he asked Liao Pantu.

Liao Pantu only glanced at the ingredients before understanding their effects completely. He nodded.

“If you add a Quhe Seed as a catalyst, it should further stimulate the formula’s restorative effects.”

The two of them were currently studying medicine for Liu Qin’s condition.

After three years of recuperation in the Bibo Hot Spring, along with Liu Chun’s meticulous care, Liu Qin’s health had improved considerably.

Moreover, two months ago, the surface of her dantian had finally begun to heal.

Although it was only an initial recovery and she was still some distance from a complete restoration, the preliminary repair of her dantian had at last allowed Liu Qin to regain consciousness and awaken.

She could remain awake for only a short time each day, but that alone had been enough to make Liu Chun weep with joy.

Once the surface of the dantian had begun to heal, she could supplement her treatment with medicinal pills rather than relying solely on the Bibo Hot Spring.

Everyone in the Lingxian Sect hoped that Liu Chun would soon be able to bring his younger sister back to the sect. Thus, after the recruitment of new disciples was completed, Sun Yigao and Liao Pantu had begun researching medicinal pills with better healing effects.

Liu Qin was already taking medicinal pills, but the results were not particularly good.