Chapter 767: Bulletin
Qi Xuansu and Zhang Yuelu brought Lin Yuanmiao away from Wuxing Mountain and returned to the Imperial Capital. The journey was uneventful. Everything had already settled like dust after a storm.
Upon returning to the Yuhuang Palace located in the Xuanshang North District, Zhang Yuelu parted from Qi Xuansu.
This journey to Wuxing Mountain had greatly benefited Zhang Yuelu. In particular, after True Lord Ziguang helped her fully refine the Thunder Talisman, her cultivation rose. Now, she was only a hair’s breadth away from the Wuliang stage, with no further bottlenecks, so she needed to first stabilize her rapidly elevated cultivation level.
The next part would be simple. As long as she cultivated steadily, she could reach the Wuliang stage in as little as a month or, at most, three months. In doing so, Zhang Yuelu would become the first among the three Daoist prodigies to step into the Wuliang stage, and likely the youngest Heavenly Being of that level in the entire Daoist Order.
In this regard, Qi Xuansu would never surpass Zhang Yuelu. Even if he were to obtain another piece of Xuan Jade today and immediately break through to the Wuliang stage, he was still one year older than her.
As for Qi Xuansu himself, he did gain some benefits from being possessed by True Lord Ziguang. First and foremost, he acquired over 1,000 marks of divine power out of nowhere. Combined with his existing 900-plus marks, he now had more than 2,000 marks of divine power. This was an impressive amount for a Heavenly Being at the Xiaoyao stage, enough for him to spend freely for some time. This was merely True Lord Ziguang’s remnants, which were of little value to her. Thus, she simply abandoned it, which also showed just how enormous the divine power expenditure was for a single divine descent.
Secondly, apart from his Taiyin Spiritual Statue, Qi Xuansu gained the Ziguang Spiritual Statue. At first glance, it might seem that he obtained it too easily, but on closer thought, it was anything but. The experience of being possessed by an Ancient Immortal and surviving it was not something just anyone could have. Even Qi Xuansu himself would not be able to replicate this rare event. Besides needing a Longevity Stone Heart, a divine descent required over 10,000 marks of divine power and, most importantly, a critical moment of fate.
Beyond that, True Lord Ziguang healed all of his injuries. Whether it was Qin Quanxiao cutting off his legs or severing his spine, none of it left behind any hidden damage. The same went for Zhang Yuelu. This spared both of them considerable recovery time. Without True Lord Ziguang’s help, even if their lives were not at risk, they would have needed a significant period to recuperate.
However, Qi Xuansu’s own cultivation had not increased much. It was still the same as before. His progress in cultivation could not even be compared to Zhang Yuelu’s.
Even though Qi Xuansu used the Cicada Shedding Realm to make up for part of his lacking aptitude, the gap remained massive. After all, not all Banished Immortals were equal in caliber. The Cicada Shedding Realm merely allowed a Rogue Cultivator to reach the minimum threshold, while Zhang Yuelu was clearly far above that baseline. Her previously slow progress was due to her being distracted by too many responsibilities, not because of a lack of talent.
First of all, Qi Xuansu was a Rogue Cultivator, while Zhang Yuelu was a Banished Immortal. This was a fundamental difference. Though Qi Xuansu could be considered a manmade Banished Immortal, he lacked the essential Qi Refiner lineage. Therefore, he could not achieve the Lesser Five Qi Convergence.