Spiritual energy flowed.
Out of nowhere, green points of light surged forth, completely enveloping the person beside him.
The light flickered, casting a translucent glow over the young girl's pale complexion.
Her eyes were closed, her eyelashes resting quietly. Stray hairs slipped from behind her ear to drape over her cheek, gently stirred by the swirling points of light.
Her loose, oversized Daoist robe draped loosely over her body, rising and falling slightly with her breathing.
Ning Zhou stared blankly for a moment, and in the next second, the light suddenly burst outward.
The green points of light, which had been swirling gently, suddenly accelerated from all directions, frantically surging into Song Yao's body.
A gale swept through the pavilion, sending pages rustling and flapping wildly. One book after another flew off the shelves, spinning through the air.
Before Ning Zhou could even snap out of it, several books came flying straight at his face.
Bang!
Fortunately, the door was pushed open in the next second.
The Teaching Elder walked in, followed by a large crowd of new disciples.
With a flick of the fly-whisk in his hand, a beam of white light wrapped around Ning Zhou, pulling him out from among the flying books and behind the elder.
When he looked at Song Yao in the center of the pavilion, his eyes were filled with uncontrollable shock and admiration. “Foundation Establishment... and in such a short time...”
He had also been present at yesterday's apprenticeship ceremony, and he had examined the cultivation bases of several Heaven-grade disciples back then.
Aside from this girl, everyone else had already cultivated on their own for a long time, reaching the Foundation Establishment Rank or even higher.
At the time, he had felt it was a pity that this young girl hadn't entered the Nine Saints Hall to study the Dao earlier, causing her to fall far behind the others.
He never expected that in just the span of a single incense stick, she would master the circulation of the five elements of heaven and earth, bypass the Qi Refining Stage entirely, and successfully achieve Foundation Establishment.
A genius of this caliber was someone he had only ever seen among the personal disciples.
That person had also mastered the pattern in a single breath, terrifyingly strong.
What a pity...
Pulling his thoughts back, he looked at the gradually fading light in the center. Stroking his beard, he sighed again. “Such talent is truly rare. If you all have time, you should consult her more. This child will surely achieve great things in the future.”
The Teaching Elder had been scolding people all day, so this being his first time praising someone made the new disciples even more curious as they crowded forward.
“Elder, it's only Foundation Establishment.”
A voice rang out from the front row. The young man speaking had a look of injustice on his face.
He scratched his head. “Haven't Jiang Jin and Cheng Yue already reached Foundation Establishment long ago? Why are you only praising her?”
Jiang Jin was standing right next to the speaker. Hearing this, the corners of his mouth curled up slightly.
He bowed to the Teaching Elder with cupped hands, his posture humble and polite. “This disciple indeed achieved Foundation Establishment two months ago. It was merely a stroke of luck.”
He paused, his gaze sweeping over the surrounding new disciples as he spoke in a warm tone, “If you don't mind, you can also come and ask me if there is anything you don't understand about cultivation in the future.”
He spoke beautifully, and combined with his simple, easygoing appearance, the surrounding disciples immediately looked at him with much more favor.
Only Cheng Yue stood to the side, looking at them in disbelief. “Is that even the same thing?”
The young man frowned. “How is it different?”
Cheng Yue sneered. “It took me nearly three years to reach Foundation Establishment, and didn't Jiang Jin also take over a year?”
As soon as she finished speaking, someone immediately stood up for him. “Isn't over a year fast enough? Who else doesn't take six or seven years?”
“It's only because Jiang Jin has a Heaven-grade spiritual root that he's so incredible!”
“And Jiang Jin is almost at the Golden Core Rank, right?”
Cheng Yue looked at them as if they were a bunch of fools, then chin-pointed toward Song Yao. “Yesterday, she wasn't even at the Qi Refining Stage. Today, Foundation Establishment.”
“...What?”
The few who had been passionately defending Jiang Jin choked on their words instantly.
The first young man stammered, “Are you kidding me? She wasn't even at the Qi Refining Stage yesterday, so how could she achieve Foundation Establishment now?”
“One day?!”
“Foundation Establishment in a single day?”
Now, everyone's gaze shifted away from Jiang Jin and locked onto Song Yao once again.
Even the smile on Jiang Jin's face froze. He opened his mouth, saying, “Could there be some mistake?”
“There is no mistake.”
The Teaching Elder's gaze swept over them as he delivered his conclusion. “She didn't take a day. She only took the time of a single incense stick. That is why I want you all to learn from her.”
...
This could no longer be called a genius.
This was a monster.
No, even a demonic beast would find it hard to sense the spiritual energy of heaven and earth this quickly.
Amidst the silence, the light finally retracted completely.
Amidst the cluttered pile of books, the young girl slowly exhaled a breath of turbid air and opened her eyes.
Perhaps because she had been nourished by spiritual energy, the sickly, sallow look on her face had completely vanished. Her lips were slightly rosier than before, no longer looking so frail and sickly.
As their eyes met, Song Yao was the first to speak. “Um...”
One was bound to show some favoritism toward high-achieving disciples.
The Teaching Elder was noticeably gentler than before. He asked, “You're awake? How do you feel?”
Song Yao had already known they were coming while she was cultivating, but she had no choice. It was difficult to forcibly halt a breakthrough, or she would suffer a backlash.
Supporting herself against the floor, she stood up. After hesitating for a moment, she finally gathered her courage and said, “Since I achieved Foundation Establishment so quickly, could I...”
She paused.
Everyone in the room pricked up their ears.
“Could you give me some spirit stones as a reward?”
Who have expected such a down-to-earth request.
The pavilion was so quiet that one could hear the wind blowing fallen leaves outside the window.
The Teaching Elder's expression was rather complex. Only after a long while did he say, “Foundation Establishment disciples can collect two hundred spirit stones from the Accounts Hall every month.”
Two hundred spirit stones.
That meant she would have to go without eating or drinking and save up for twenty-eight months to pay off her debt.
She suddenly missed her days as a villain.
Back then, she could squander her master's and fellow disciples' private stashes at will, never having to worry about money.
“Everyone disperse. Remember to memorize the sect rules when you get back. Anyone who is late again will face double the punishment.”
The disciples began to stream out.
Ning Zhou squeezed through the crowd and grabbed Song Yao's sleeve, looking at her as if she were some kind of legendary beast. “Lin Mu, you're too incredible! How did you do that? Teach me!”
This sort of thing could only be felt, not explained in words.
Song Yao thought about it, grabbed his wrist, and gathered her spiritual energy to trace a pathway. “Try circulating your Qi along this path and see if it helps.”
When she first entered her former sect, her master had taught her some methods, but it was inconvenient to tell Ning Zhou lest it arouse suspicion. She could only try teaching him in her own way.
Ning Zhou clearly felt the surge of Qi become significantly stronger, and his eyes instantly lit up. “Benefactor! You are my benefactor!”
Song Yao smiled and let out a soft breath.
Previously, on the main peak, the strength of the people around her was very balanced, so she hadn't felt particularly powerful.
Now that she was blending into the crowd, judging by the others' reactions, they seemed very surprised that she had achieved Foundation Establishment so quickly.
Especially that male protagonist, Jiang Jin. It actually took him over a year to reach Foundation Establishment?
This sort of power-fantasy novel was nothing special after all. She had no idea how a trash like him managed to win over his fellow disciples.
It seemed she still needed to hide her abilities a bit more.
But it wasn't a big deal. Her metal spiritual root was completely sealed anyway. Even if they suspected something, they had no proof that she was Song Yao.
Rate on N.U.
