Chapter 1219 - 1216: Puppet Sect
The three women all entered the sect less than three years ago, and they have had very little experience traveling, so they are unaware of the dangers in the cultivation world.
"How can I prove it?" Lin Chuan asked with interest, looking at the woman with a gentle smile, his expression innocuous and soothing, his eyes clean and clear, making it hard to harbor suspicion.
Honestly, although Lin Chuan's looks aren't top-tier, having reached the Refining God realm, he possesses a unique aura. His gaze can change with his thoughts, becoming clear, making him quite charming to these women.
In truth, Lin Chuan is not someone who kills indiscriminately; his experiences are just unlike most people's.
"Our sect elders just left, so keep your distance from us. Wait until our sect elders arrive, and then we'll decide," said the chubby Maoshan Tao disciple, after consulting with the tall, thin Maoshan Tao disciple beside him, loudly addressing Lin Chuan.
Lin Chuan nodded slightly without answering, directly finding a clean, round stone by the creek, sitting cross-legged, and began cultivating.
True Qi circulates in the meridians, completing cycles. After it moved through more than ten cycles, a sound of something tearing through the air reached Lin Chuan's ear.
His eyes, lightly closed, opened, and Lin Chuan stood up, stopping his cultivation. By this time, an old man with a childish face and white hair had appeared before him.
"Grandpa, you've returned." The chubby boy immediately got up, running behind the old man.
"Elder Wei." The other four all bowed in greeting.
This old man was the elder accompanying them on their training trip, and also the chubby boy's grandfather.
The old man affectionately tapped the chubby boy's head twice, his gaze falling on Lin Chuan, who was dressed in white like a scholar: "Who is this?"
"Grandpa, he's here for the taste of the grilled fish I made. He says he's just passing through. We couldn't see his cultivation level, so we wouldn't let him near until you returned to decide." The chubby boy spoke truthfully.
The old man nodded slightly: "He merely hid his power; it's normal not to see through his realm."
He then focused his gaze on Lin Chuan: "What's your name? Why have you come here?"
The old man's gaze was serious, his eyes sharp as he looked at Lin Chuan.
Though Lin Chuan concealed his cultivation, revealing only some ordinary inner Qi, his excellent bone structure could not be hidden.
With just one glance, the old man could see Lin Chuan's exceptional bone structure, sparking the thought of recruiting him: "Wait, have I allowed you to leave?"
He spoke slowly, word by word.
As his voice fell, a formidable aura spread, causing Lin Chuan's lifted foot, ready to leave, to fall back to the ground.
"Senior, is there something else?" Lin Chuan's gaze was calm, as deep and boundless as a clear pool, looking at the old man.
In Lin Chuan's eyes, the old man's figure was reflected.
Since he began cultivating, Lin Chuan has had a genuine heart for cultivation. He has endured through the torment of Blood Underworld and the Demon Lord, but this pure heart for cultivation has never truly disappeared.
The Taoist path generally emphasizes practicing Qi to form a core, and forming a core to transform into divinity.
The so-called Qi Cultivation refers to cultivating inner Qi. When inner Qi reaches a certain level, it condenses into an inner core in the dantian. Only people who have reached this level can be called masters.
In many people's eyes, inner core level cultivation is immensely powerful, but to Lin Chuan today, inner core level cultivation is insignificant, so he feels no need to argue too much with the old man.
"I've not permitted you to leave, hence you cannot," the old man's voice was deep, carrying an undeniable tone, suggesting that disobedience would lead only to a dead end.
Lin Chuan feigned fear, with a few tinges of dread on his face: "Senior, you don't intent to let me leave, thinking to silence me?"
After speaking, Lin Chuan's face turned ashen, his acting worthy of a top award if this were a human world, lest it be unworthy of his name 'Lin Chuan' given by his father.
The old man snorted, took a step forward, grabbing Lin Chuan's arm, injecting a burst of True Qi into Lin Chuan's body. A look of shock hastily appeared on the old man's face.
Now at the Refining God realm, Lin Chuan's bones are as translucent as jade, having been cleansed repeatedly, with impurities almost entirely removed. In terms of cultivation physique and meridians, he's exemplary. Moreover, from the outset of his cultivation, Lin Chuan possessed excellent foundations, which have subtly transformed as his cultivation level advanced, making him now an exceptionally rare talent.
"Are you truly a passerby? No master or sect?" the old man stared into Lin Chuan's eyes intently.
Lin Chuan nodded in panic, not answering his question, merely saying in a panic: "Mercy, senior, mercy."
"Answer me," the old man asked harshly in a low voice.
Lin Chuan's body shivers like a leaf: "Spare me, elder! I'm just a loose cultivator from overseas, with no master or sect. We have no grievances; just grant this junior a way out. If I ever succeed in the future, I will surely remember your great kindness and virtue. On holidays, I promise to burn incense and paper for you, prepare wine and food, worship the heavens and earth, and offer you blessings."
The short and stout old man lifts a hand and knocks Lin Chuan's head with a flick: "Stop joking with me, I'm not dead yet, I don't need your incense or paper offerings, nor do I need your worship."
The short and stout old man is so enraged by Lin Chuan's words that his teeth itch.
At first, upon seeing Lin Chuan's scholarly appearance, he thought Lin Chuan was a gentleman. But in just a few words, Lin Chuan's true nature was exposed.
As a Nascent Soul cultivator, it's been years since anyone dared to treat him as weak as Lin Chuan. If it weren't for Lin Chuan's exceptional talent, rare as a phoenix feather, the old man would have struck him down just for the earlier disrespect.
"Spare me, elder, spare me! I have a treasure here that I'm willing to offer in exchange for a way out." Lin Chuan slapped his storage bag and took out a longsword with ten layers of restrictions.
The short and stout old man snatched the longsword from Lin Chuan's hand, furious, and threw it to the ground, jumping angrily three feet high, trampling on the sword, while Lin Chuan pretended to look pained.
"You brat, if you joke with me again, you'll end up like this sword." The short and stout old man cursed angrily as he jumped.
At this moment, Lin Chuan seized the opportunity to flee as fast as he could.
The short and stout old man became even more irritated, and with one palm print, a giant hand appeared in the void, grabbing the fleeing Lin Chuan back: "Why are you running, boy?"
Being caught again, Lin Chuan rolled his eyes helplessly, as if resigned to his fate: "Old fat man, if I don't run, are you going to wait for me to be killed?" Old fat man?
The short and stout old man's face turned liver-colored. He hated being called short and stout, but he took a deep breath and endured it, grudgingly: "When did I say I was going to kill you?"
Lin Chuan said: "If you're not killing me, then why don't you let me leave? Unless you want to take me home to be your grandson?" Lin Chuan glanced at the little fatty, anxiously: "I won't be your grandson, that would make me two generations younger and a real loss."
Then Lin Chuan smiled brightly: "If you have a pretty granddaughter, I could be your grandson-in-law."
The short and stout old man felt dizzy, furious, and his blood surged. After hundreds of years, he finally realized that one could truly be angered to the point of fainting or even death.
Lin Chuan, fearless, continued his cheeky manner, unfazed, since the short and stout old man's cultivation level was inferior to his own, he wasn't afraid of truly being silenced.
The little fatty and the other four members of Maoshan Tao were dumbfounded, looking at Lin Chuan as if they had seen a ghost.
The little fatty knew his grandfather's temperament best; his grandfather was strict with everyone but him, yet today...
The little fatty couldn't understand, nor could the others.
"Boy, one more word and I'll sew your mouth shut with a needle, believe it?" The short and stout old man threatened, dizzy with anger, glaring at Lin Chuan.
Lin Chuan obediently closed his mouth, showing an innocent smile.
"This training session is over, we are now heading back to the sect." The short and stout old man commanded, waving his plump hand, taking Lin Chuan and the other five rapidly toward the Puppet Sect.
In the dense forest, Xu Ji was crouching on the branches of an ancient towering tree, nibbling on a half-raw apple.
He watched the exchange between Lin Chuan and the short and stout old man, keeping everything in sight.
"What's this kid up to now?" Xu Ji wondered as he looked towards the direction Lin Chuan was taken.
Although puzzled, Xu Ji didn't interfere, knowing that a Nascent Soul level Maoshan Tao cultivator posed no real threat to Lin Chuan.
However, this time, Xu Ji was very wrong.
How was he to know what the Puppet Sect really was?
The Puppet Sect is actually another branch of Maoshan Tao. Ever since those Maoshan Tao people flooded the human world with Yin Spirits from the hell world, they had since entered the hell world themselves.
Qin Zhengtian's ambition really isn't small; not only does he want to unify the entire Taoist clan, but he also wants to extend his influence into the hell world.
In the meeting hall, the Sect Master and all the Elders were gathered.
On both sides of the hall, several elders were seated, while a white-haired Sect Master sat centrally.
"Sect Master, calling us here in such a hurry, is there something happening in the sect?" Second Elder Sun Yun spoke first, clad in a purple robe, sharp-eyed like a hawk, with a nose like a hook, making him easily memorable.