Chapter 26: The Perilous Path of Cultivation

It was a joke. A Fifth-Leaf expert couldn’t even touch him. If a bunch of small fry like them went up against him, what would they be doing if not asking for a beating?

Seeing his followers falter, Zhang Kuang knew he couldn’t back down any longer, or he would never be able to hold his head high again. Standing just a few steps from Qin Haoxuan, he mustered his courage and shouted, “Why are you afraid of him? When I master the supreme Great Dao, a mere Qin Haoxuan will be nothing! If he dares to harm you today, I will repay him a hundred, a thousand times over in the future!”

Qin Haoxuan completely ignored Zhang Kuang’s empty promises. With a look of utter contempt, he patted the face of the lewd disciple in his grasp, whose face was now beet red. He then glanced around and sneered, “You’re a Spirit Sprout Realm cultivator, aren’t you? If you get crippled by someone who hasn’t even sprouted a seedling yet, how will you ever hold your head high again?”

His words were seemingly for the man in his hand, but they were a clear warning to everyone else not to interfere.

The sound of his hand slapping the disciple’s face echoed, but it felt as if the slaps were landing on Zhang Kuang’s own face.

If it had been any other new disciple, even Zhang Kuang or Li Jing, who had said such things, they would have been swarmed and beaten to a pulp. But coming from Qin Haoxuan, who had defeated Third-Leaf and Fifth-Leaf experts, his words carried a different weight.

Everyone in the Spirit Field Valley knew of his monstrous resilience. If they failed to injure him and got beaten up instead, they would truly become a laughingstock. Even if their cultivation surpassed his in the future, the stain of being defeated by a mere mortal would never wash away. Besides, what was the point of winning? A cultivator bullying a newcomer would only make them a subject of ridicule.

After weighing the pros and cons, those who had been itching for a fight froze in their tracks. Even the few Fifth-Leaf experts had no intention of making a move. For people of their status, reputation was paramount. This Qin Haoxuan was too strange; they didn’t want to risk their fame by failing in such an unexpected way.

The disciple in Qin Haoxuan’s grasp was turning purple, barely able to breathe. Qin Haoxuan threw him to the ground like a sack of garbage, raising a cloud of dust. He then planted his foot on the man’s face, but his cold gaze was locked on Zhang Kuang, who was just three steps away. “Until you have the ability to defeat me, you’d better not act so arrogantly in my presence. Otherwise, it would be as easy as turning my hand to kill you. Don’t believe me? Try me.”

Zhang Kuang broke out in a cold sweat. The fear Qin Haoxuan had instilled in him over the years was too deep. The sheer dominance he had displayed today, even contemptuously facing Fifth-Leaf experts, was enough to make not just him, but even the stronger cultivators, hesitate.

Qin Haoxuan’s single-handed suppression of the crowd was a display of spirit that even Li Jing, watching from afar, had to admire. He sighed to himself; it was a good thing Qin Haoxuan was just a disciple with a weak seed. If he were also a Purple Seed, he would undoubtedly be his greatest rival for the position of Sect Master. As it was, he didn’t need to worry about him too much. In time, he would leave him far behind.

However, Li Jing was pleased to see Qin Haoxuan dismantle Zhang Kuang’s faction and expose his cowardice. If Zhang Kuang couldn’t even handle a weak seed, and the followers he had gathered were all timid wastes, then as long as he could win over Xu Yu, Zhang Kuang would not pose a significant threat. Then, he could find a way to dispose of the ungrateful Qin Haoxuan.

After creating a major disturbance, Qin Haoxuan knew when to quit. His goal was to suppress Zhang Kuang’s arrogance, not to fight to the death. With several Fifth-Leaf experts in the enemy camp, a real fight might not end well for him.

As he turned to leave, his eyes met Li Jing’s. Seeing the wariness in his gaze, he couldn’t help but give a wry smile. Why are the two Unsurpassed Purple Seeds of the Taichu Sect so idle? Instead of focusing on their cultivation, why are they so entangled with a weak seed like me?

Having made a grand exit, Qin Haoxuan returned to his dormitory. But before he had even sat for half an incense stick’s time, Xu Yu came to find him personally, inviting him to her room to go over the past few days of lecture notes.

Her room was in the female disciples’ dormitory area. Under the suggestive gazes of countless onlookers, Qin Haoxuan walked in, and the door closed behind him.

Entering her room, the unique, fresh scent of a young woman’s quarters filled his nose. The room was simple, with just a bed, a table, and a chair, all neatly arranged. On the small windowsill were a few potted plants, one of which was in bloom. In a corner, a dozen or so small medicinal herbs were planted, adding a touch of life to the small space.

After scanning the room, Qin Haoxuan’s gaze fell on Xu Yu. Only then did he notice her deep blush. It took him a moment to realize: girls are sensitive. Even he had felt awkward under those suggestive stares, let alone her.

The atmosphere was a bit awkward. The host was the first to break the silence. “I’m sorry, Brother Haoxuan. Elder Chu has assigned so much homework these past few days, I didn’t have time to bring you the notes.”

Seeing her apologize with her head bowed, Qin Haoxuan was both amused and touched. This silly girl acted as if it were her duty to bring him notes. He smiled and said, “You’re a Purple Seed disciple; of course Elder Chu is going to give you special attention. This is great, I can go through all the notes at once.”

With that, he picked up the notebook from the table. But as he was about to open it, he sensed something was wrong. Looking at Xu Yu, he saw that her eyes were red, and she looked aggrieved. “Brother Haoxuan, I don’t look down on you. It doesn’t matter that you’re not a Purple Seed. I believe your future achievements will be no less than Zhang Kuang’s or Li Jing’s!”

The catch in her voice made Qin Haoxuan panic. He hadn’t been this flustered even when facing a Fifth-Leaf expert. He was at a complete loss for what to do.

His awkward reaction made Xu Yu giggle. “Alright, Brother Haoxuan. You should read the notes. If you don’t understand anything, just ask me.”

Qin Haoxuan nodded in relief, wanting to bury his head in the notebook.

After reading for a while, he came across an introduction to a spiritual technique called the “Art of Spirit Infusion.”

It was a technique that gathered nearby spiritual energy and infused it into growing plants to accelerate their growth and enhance their medicinal properties. It could be cultivated after the Sprouting Stage.

Seeing him turn to that page, Xu Yu explained, “In half a year, the sect will no longer provide us with food, and we’ll have to grow our own. This art can speed up the growth of our spiritual herbs, so we need to practice it now. Oh, and during alchemy, it can also be used to infuse herbs with spiritual energy to improve the quality of the final pill, but that requires a much higher cultivation level.”

With that, she began to teach him the hand seals.

She brought her ten slender fingers together, then bent her middle and ring fingers, laying the other three over them. She muttered an incantation, and a faint wisp of spiritual energy gathered in her hands. But when she tried to infuse it into one of the medicinal herbs, the energy suddenly dissipated.

Xu Yu smiled. “I haven’t completed the Rooting Stage yet, so the spiritual energy I can gather is very thin and not up to the standard for infusion. I’m also not proficient enough. The moment I move, the energy disappears. But I should be able to master it by the time I reach the Sprouting Stage.”

Qin Haoxuan nodded. For a Purple Seed, such a low-level technique was a piece of cake. A few days ago, the three of them had mastered the Spirit Induction Art almost instantly, while he and the other disciples with weak seeds had taken a long time.

After Xu Yu taught him a few times, Qin Haoxuan tried to imitate her, and failed as expected. But he was not discouraged. Aptitude was determined by the heavens, but with hard work, he believed he could catch up.

Xu Yu, who had been about to comfort him, saw his unconcerned expression and relaxed. Over the past few days, she had come to understand that he was an optimistic and broad-minded person.

Although his aptitude was average, he had a strong personal charisma that always made him stand out. Even the brilliance of the Purple Seed disciples could not overshadow him. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have earned the jealousy of Zhang Kuang and Li Jing.

Qin Haoxuan studied the notes diligently, humbly asking Xu Yu about anything he didn’t understand. She answered all his questions. By the time he had finished the notes, it was nearly dusk, and his stomach was rumbling.

He had dinner with Xu Yu. His appetite, which was five times that of a normal person, earned him many stares. After “monster,” he had now earned the glorious new nickname of “glutton.”

After bidding her farewell, he had intended to go back to his dormitory for a good night’s sleep. The injuries and intense cultivation of the past few days had left him feeling a sense of mental, rather than physical, fatigue.

But when he returned, he saw many of the other disciples with weak seeds cultivating desperately, causing the spiritual energy in the dormitory to become thin. Moreover, the remaining medicinal power in his body was still tormenting him with a searing heat. Without the geothermal energy of the Lava Cellar to suppress it, the feeling was unbearable.

Since he hadn’t fully digested the lotus’s power, he had no plans to venture into the Immortal-Slaying Poison Valley again for now. And sleep was a luxury his heated body could not afford. He had no choice but to leave the dormitory and find a quiet place to cultivate.