This Sword Cultivator is Somewhat Dependable-Chapter 628 - 90: The Reward of the Sword Sect

Chapter 628 -90: The Reward of the Sword Sect

“There’s still something lacking in the sensation,” Lu Qingshan slowly opened his eyes in the bamboo building.

Clutching that unvanished sparkle of spiritual light in his mind, he had contemplated the Destruction True Intent for another ten days, yet he still couldn’t cross that threshold.

Calm and composed, he regulated his breath before slowly rising to his feet.

First, he habitually took out his Sword Token to see if anyone had sent him a sword message during his seclusion.

It was usually empty.

After all, although he had been a member of the Sword Sect for three years, apart from Ji Chuan, his relations with others were generally superficial.

However, this time, there was a flicker of spiritual light on the Sword Token.

Someone is looking for me? Who could it be?

Lu Qingshan was somewhat surprised.

With this thought, he sent his Divine Sense into it.

There were not just one but two sword messages.

The first message was sent by Uncle-Master Xi Xiang.

It was succinct, asking him to visit Hua Ying Peak when he found leisure after ending his seclusion.

Although it didn’t specify the matter at hand, Lu Qingshan had a rough guess about Xi Xiang’s purpose in summoning him.

The second message came from Xue Hanfeng.

He had little more than a nodding acquaintance with Xue Hanfeng, so receiving a letter from them was quite unexpected for Lu Qingshan.

The contents of the message were brief. It mentioned that a message had come from under the Sword Sect’s command: half a month ago near Mount Changbai in the southernmost part of Lan State, someone had spotted traces of a ‘Metal Well Jade Railing’ that had gained sentience.

The Metal Well Jade Railing is an extremely precious supreme spiritual medicine.

Born from Heaven and Earth, such a spiritual medicine nurtures within it a natural mysteriousness from the moment of its creation.

Once ingested, one could gain an understanding of the many mysteries and secrets that reside within the Metal Well Jade Railing.

According to rumors, the mysteries nurtured by this Metal Well Jade Railing are related to the category of Causality.

As the saying goes, by grasping one thing, you may understand related concepts; if Lu Qingshan could capture this Metal Well Jade Railing and consume it, gaining its mysterious secrets, it might trigger and enhance his own Causality True Intent.

Besides relaying the rumor, the message contained nothing else.

Whether the news was true or false, whether it was credible, and whether it was urging Lu Qingshan to go treasure hunting, Xue Hanfeng did not mention.

These matters were intended for Lu Qingshan to analyze and decide on his own. Snow Han Peak’s responsibility was merely to convey the message.

Of course, while Xue Hanfeng didn’t explicitly state it, Lu Qingshan understood that the message also conveyed an intention of goodwill from Xue Hanfeng.

Sword Cultivators may not appreciate flattery, but that doesn’t mean they’re recluses.

For Lu Qingshan, who had shown heaven-defying performances in the Taoist Sect competition and ranked first on the Yellow List, there were certainly more than just Xue Hanfeng within the Sword Sect who wanted to forge a relationship with him.

And Xue Hanfeng was among the first to act, targeting his needs precisely.

After all, it was common knowledge that Lu Qingshan needed Causality True Intent treasures to enhance his own Causality True Intent.

“Quite interesting…” However, as Lu Qingshan looked at this sword message, an enigmatic expression appeared on his face.

After pondering for a while, he made up his mind, put away the Sword Token, and flew on his sword towards Hua Ying Peak.

….

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On Hua Ying Peak, within the Zong Heng Hall.

Lu Qingshan was granted an audience with Xi Xiang.

As one of the contemporary Sword Sect’s Sword Cultivators with the oldest seniority besides a few Peak Masters, Xi Xiang, along with Kong Shan Daoist, was both highly respected in the Sword Sect and held in esteem by the unmalleable Sword Cultivators.

The two had different responsibilities: Kong Shan Daoist was charged with external affairs, while Xi Xiang managed internal matters.

To manage internal affairs meant to handle the rewards and punishments of disciples.

Lu Qingshan believed he had done nothing wrong; so why would there be a punishment?

And if there were to be a punishment, why ask him to attend at his convenience rather than immediately?

Therefore, it was clear that Xi Xiang called him for a reward.

And indeed it was.

“Your presence is summoned this time to commend you for your performance in the Taoist Sect competition,” said Xi Xiang in an even tone.

Defending the glory of the Sword Sect in the Taoist Sect competition was Lu Qingshan’s duty, something he chose voluntarily, not expecting anything in return.

But that was just Lu Qingshan’s view; the Sword Sect wouldn’t think so narrowly.

The Sword Sect always upheld a principle: nothing in this world is owed by Heaven or Earth.

The relationship between a sect and its disciples can only be unbreakable when emotional ties are established, and in order to form these ties, there must be no shortfall in the benefits offered.

Lu Qingshan, since you have made contributions to the Sword Sect, the Sword Sect must naturally reward you, Lu Qingshan.

The rewards from the Sword Sect are threefold.

First, Lu Qingshan’s quota in the Treasure Hall will be increased by five hundred Spirit Crystals.

This is a reward in terms of privileges.

As the treasure library of the Sword Sect, the preciousness of the quota in the Treasure Hall goes without saying, and it is extremely difficult to increase.

Most disciples of the Sword Sect only come into contact with increasing their cultivation.

A Golden Core Realm cultivator has a quota of five Spirit Crystals, while a Nascent Soul Cultivator gets fifty more Spirit Crystals on top of their existing basis.

Lu Qingshan had already used up his quota of five Spirit Crystals to exchange for advanced spiritual materials for his Peach Blossom, and even bought some quota from Ji Chuan.

This time, he was directly rewarded with a quota of five hundred Spirit Crystals, plus the fifty Spirit Crystals he should receive upon being promoted to Nascent Soul Cultivator, as well as the one hundred Spirit Crystal quota from ranking first on the Yellow List. His quota suddenly soared to a terrifying number that many Void Refining Sword Cultivators within the sect could not match.

For any disciple of the Sword Sect, the quota in the Treasure Hall is an essential need because everyone needs spirit materials to upgrade the quality of their life-bound swords, and Lu Qingshan is no exception.

Therefore, he couldn’t be more satisfied with this reward.

Second, the Sword Sect’s Sword Pavilion will be opened to Lu Qingshan without any restrictions.

The Sword Pavilion is actually the Sword Sect’s repository of tomes, where tens of thousands of jade slips collected or plundered over tens of thousands of years are stored, as numerous as cow hair.

The contents of these jade slips are diverse, including swordsmanship, escape techniques, auxiliary spells, customs, Exotic Beasts Compendium… in short, a wide variety.

Of course, what attracts the Sword Sect disciples the most are the sword techniques stored there.

With tens of thousands of years of heritage, the Sword Sect has produced countless outstanding Sword Cultivators, and these exceptionally talented individuals have more or less left one or two signature sword techniques in the Sword Pavilion.

And these sword techniques are the essence, refined by predecessors after countless battles and continuous improvements.

Of course, there are also sword techniques plundered from the outside, but compared to the ones left by the sect’s own cultivators, these external sword techniques are fewer in number.

However, this does not mean that Sword Sect cultivators don’t kill much outside; rather, it’s because the Sword Sect has exceptionally stringent requirements for swordsmanship.

Sword techniques that are not strong enough simply do not qualify to be included in the Sword Pavilion… If they were strong enough, would they be plundered by the Sword Sect?

Anyway, the Sword Pavilion holds great significance for the disciples of the Sword Sect.

As the saying goes, “The master leads you to the door; the cultivation is up to you.” Why does the Sword Sect decree that once a disciple advances to Void Refining, they must leave the main peak and choose another peak for themselves?

This represents the Sword Sect’s cultivation philosophy. From the moment of reaching Void Refining, you are an independent Sword Cultivator, and the path of your further cultivation journey is entirely up to you.

Although cultivation depends on the individual, it cannot be pursued blindly. The stones of other hills can polish your own jade; it’s at that time, the importance of the Sword Pavilion becomes evident.

“Although the Sword Pavilion has lifted its restrictions on you, remember not to bite off more than you can chew. You must have self-control,” Xi Xiang couldn’t help but add a word of caution when announcing the second reward.

“Disciple understands,” Lu Qingshan nodded.

The last reward is much more direct, three hundred Spirit Crystals.

…

Even with Lu Qingshan’s wealth, he was still secretly astounded by the generosity of the Sword Sect’s rewards this time.

But on second thought, it made sense.

Firstly, for Taoist Sects, the glory of the sect is above all else.

He defended the glory of the Sword Sect, so the reward was bound to be significant.

Secondly, the victory in the Dao Arena competition results in the new Dao Arena being established in the Eastern Domain.

Once this Dao Arena is built, the tangible and intangible gains it brings to the Sword Sect are immeasurable.

With such tremendous benefits acquired by the Sword Sect, they surely had to share some with Lu Qingshan as a major contributor.

Finally, the Sword Sect has always been very generous towards its disciples.

After all, resources are meant to be used on disciples, and with the limited number of people in their own sect, why hold back?

Is it better to let resources decay and turn to ashes or to save them for a special occasion?

The reason the Sword Sect often places limits on the subsidies given to disciples is not due to reluctance, but because giving too much for free would make the disciples take it for granted and lose their sense of gratitude toward the Sword Sect. It could also cause them to lose their fighting spirit—why strive for anything if they live carefree lives?

These aren’t baseless suspicions, but real human nature.

Human nature has always been such.

After the Sect’s decision on the rewards was announced and distributed, Xi Xiang noticed that Lu Qingshan showed no sign of leaving, which made his brow furrow, “Is there something else?”

Lu Qingshan smiled and said, “Uncle-Master is perceptive, there is indeed another matter I wish to report…”

…