Chapter 53 Part 1

Who was Gao Chunqiu?

Since this voice had directly pierced through Silent Night Palace’s Protective Formation, almost every disciple of Silent Night Palace—aside from the seniors in secluded cultivation within the Underground Palace—heard these words.

Everyone felt a surge of doubt. Who was this Gao Chunqiu? What kind of nobody dared to come to Silent Night Palace looking for trouble?

The next second, that resonant voice continued, “This one has long admired Senior Ying through correspondence and wished to have a candid discussion with him. It just so happened that Senior Ying had arrived at Silent Night Palace, so this one took the liberty of visiting unannounced. Please forgive the intrusion.”

Oh, so he had come looking for someone and had ended up at Silent Night Palace by chance?

Gao Chunqiu’s tone seemed quite amiable, and soon enough, an on-duty cultivator from Silent Night Palace stepped forward.

Since Gao Chunqiu appeared to be at the Late Soul Transformation, Silent Night Palace dispatched a Soul Transformation cultivator to receive him.

The two conversed in the sky for a moment before Gao Chunqiu descended alongside the Soul Transformation cultivator, who then led him to Silent Night Palace’s reception hall.

This minor interlude did not affect Xie Linlang at all.

After securing victory in the Grand Pill Competition, he had obtained the right to peruse Silent Night Palace’s sect scriptures.

Xie Linlang was not a true inheriting disciple, so even if he could access the Scripture Pavilion to browse scriptures, he would only be allowed to view general texts suited to his status and cultivation stage.

But now, with special authorization, Xie Linlang could finally closely examine the private cultivation manuals and travelogues left behind by Silent Night Palace’s high-rank cultivators. By following the trails of these sect members, he could gradually trace the events that had occurred in Silent Night Palace’s past.

Xie Linlang read at an astonishing speed. He first casually flipped through some Foundation Establishment materials before inquiring with the Scripture Pavilion attendant about which high-rank sect cultivators had written cultivation manuals during their Core Formation Stage.

“I’m also preparing for Core Formation. Learning from these seniors whose paths to enlightenment were smooth might make my own journey easier.”

This was perfectly reasonable, so the Scripture Pavilion cultivator introduced him to several materials from sect Nascent Soul and even Soul Transformation cultivators, and personally escorted Xie Linlang to the area housing documents left by high-rank cultivators.

Xie Linlang was overjoyed. After sincerely thanking him, he immediately rushed over.

He knew his browsing and borrowing records would surely appear on the desks of Silent Night Palace’s higher-ups, so Xie Linlang was in no hurry. He simply read through the books in order along the shelves, one by one.

As for Gao Chunqiu? Who was that? Aside from Le Qingping’s notification about their departure, no one else was to disturb him!

It was not until three days later that Xie Linlang was pulled out of the Scripture Pavilion by a flying letter from Le Qingping.

Le Qingping had been in an excellent mood these past few days. Ying Xiaotian had stormed in aggressively to cause her trouble, but she had retrieved his puppet herself, leaving Ying Xiaotian indebted to Silent Night Palace instead.

Le Qingping had earned another sum of sect Contribution Points, which she exchanged for superior materials and a Talisman Pen. She planned to enter seclusion for a major push, thoroughly researching the reverse runes that Xie Linlang had mentioned earlier.

She shared an interesting piece of news with Xie Linlang.

“The Gao Chunqiu who visited Silent Night Palace a few days ago will be joining us on the trip to Jiuxia Mountain?”

Xie Linlang’s mind was still mulling over an anonymous senior’s travelogue, so he casually asked, “He’s already at the Soul Transformation Stage—why would he go snatch Linlang Dao Lord’s pill refining opportunity?”

No way, right? Although he had been revered as the Pill King and indeed possessed the ability to refine the Immortal Feather Pill, which helped Mahayana Stage cultivators sense immortal spiritual power, it was an overstatement to call him the strongest pill master in the entire True Realm.

Every field had its specialists; each pill master grasped numerous core pill formulas and secret arts. He was merely one of the top few.

As the saying went, no Dao was superior or inferior—all three thousand Great Daos led to sainthood; it was merely a matter of precedence.

Beyond him, the Immortal Sect Orthodox traditions all enshrined exceptionally skilled pill masters. Xie Linlang had regularly sought out these pill masters for exchanges and learning; he simply stood out as the youngest among them, which made him particularly renowned.

It was understandable for low-rank disciples to vie for inheritances, but high-rank cultivators—especially those at Soul Transformation or even Tribulation Transcendence—had already set their future paths. There was no need for them to compete with low-rank disciples for opportunities.

“Speaking of which, who exactly is this Gao Chunqiu?”

Xie Linlang suddenly realized that even he had never heard of this Soul Transformation cultivator. At the very least, he was no one from the True Realm.

“Even Senior doesn’t know?”

Le Qingping’s eyes darted about as she smiled slyly. “Rumor has it that Senior Gao is from the Demon Race. I’m not sure of his exact Original Form, but a Demon Race expert who has cultivated to Soul Transformation and behaves indistinguishably from humans must have at least a millennium of lifespan, right?”

Xie Linlang nodded in understanding. “An elusive expert from the Demon Race side?”

Demons had long lifespans and cultivated slowly. They were vulnerable to hunting in their youth, but once matured, they possessed Bloodline Divine Abilities and formidable strength.

Most demons traveled the True Realm; some with violent natures headed to the Demon Domain, while others preferred the Spirit Realm. Compared to human cultivators who raced against time every moment, demons were inherently carefree and indolent. They might find a place they liked, hole up in hibernation, and centuries would pass in a blink.

“Senior Gao isn’t interested in Linlang Dao Lord’s inheritance, but he wants a certain pill. Apparently, there might be some stored in the Mustard Seed Realm,” Le Qingping shared the intelligence she had gathered. “He’s counted among the guard slots, and the Palace Lord has already approved it.”