Chapter 55: The First Bucket of Gold!

After escorting Wan Jin back to her peak, Wan Zhao immediately returned to the Internal Affairs Hall, where she happened to run into the disciple in charge, Xiao Chong.

Though not a personal disciple, Xiao Chong was a core disciple of Penglai Sect. He had long been ranked in the top twenty of the Heavenly Pride Rankings and held considerable prestige among the inner sect disciples. He was also a trusted assistant of Wan Zhao.

Seeing Wan Zhao return, he ordered someone to bring over the prepared pills. These were meant for the disciples heading to the Yunshan Secret Realm. He also handed a list of disciples back to Wan Zhao.

“Hall Master, these are the pills prepared according to the disciple list. Please verify them once more. Once the list is announced, we can distribute the pills to the listed disciples.”

Wan Zhao nodded, her gaze falling onto the list in her hand.

As she remembered, Bai Wei’s name was not on it.

This time, for the Yunshan Secret Realm expedition, the Penglai Sect, being the top sect, had been allotted fifty spots.

The second-ranked sect, Wuliang Sect, the third-ranked Tianyu Sect, and the fourth-ranked Yuqing Sect each had thirty-five spots.

Aside from the four great sects, each of the six mid-tier sects received twenty spots, and the nine lower-tier sects received ten each.

As for the countless small sects, they didn’t even qualify for a single spot in the Yunshan Secret Realm.

While Penglai Sect did indeed have fifty spots, there were simply too many inner disciples. Foundation Establishment disciples were numerous—fifty spots simply weren’t enough.

The reason why these fifty were chosen had naturally been carefully considered by the sect master and elders.

All fifty were either exceptionally gifted or among the elite of the Foundation Establishment stage.

Some had even been at the peak of Foundation Establishment for a long time. The sect hoped that by entering the secret realm, they might break through to the Core Formation stage.

Each of the fifty disciples had a valid reason to go. Since the list was finalized by the sect master and elders, Wan Zhao had no authority to alter it.

Even if she did have the authority to swap someone out, she felt it would be inappropriate.

She wasn’t the kind of person who would steal another disciple’s chance.

But she could tell that Ye Qingning and Bai Wei were very close—otherwise, they wouldn’t have requested to share a courtyard, and Ye Qingning wouldn’t have inquired about Bai Wei’s name being on the list.

That incident with the lightning tribulation—Ye Qingning could have demanded a hefty favor from Wan Jin, yet she had only asked for some spirit stones. Even so, Wan Zhao still felt indebted to her. After all, without Ye Qingning’s help, Wan Jin might not have survived the tribulation.

Since that girl cared about her senior sister so much, Wan Zhao was more than willing to help, even if Ye Qingning hadn’t said a word.

“Xiao Chong, you’ve always had a good head on your shoulders. If I wanted to add someone to the list, would you know how?”

Xiao Chong paused, “Hall Master wants to add one more disciple? But the number of spots allocated to each sect is fixed—it really isn’t allowed.”

“I remember back when I was a Foundation Establishment disciple myself and went to the Yunshan Secret Realm, the sect master of Tianyu Sect had a daughter who hadn’t even reached Foundation Establishment yet, but insisted on going.”

“Though the secret realm allows anyone under Core Formation to enter, the number of disciples per sect was fixed. Rules are rules—no one was allowed to break them. That girl didn’t get to go in the end either.”

“It would indeed be difficult to add another disciple this time, but… there is one way.”

Wan Zhao: “Oh? Let’s hear it.”

Xiao Chong: “For this trip, each sect is sending fifty Foundation Establishment disciples. Additionally, two people from each sect will accompany them to ensure their safety, but their cultivation must be suppressed to Foundation Establishment level.”

“In the past, sects would usually send hall masters or elders, but this time, the sect master has chosen two disciples instead. I happen to be one of them.”

“If I don’t go, we could have one more spot for a disciple—without needing to replace anyone. The other escort is our senior brother, and even without me, his ability is more than enough to protect the group.”

Wan Zhao’s eyes lit up. She knew this kid would have a way.

“And you? Don’t want to go back to the Yunshan Secret Realm?”

Xiao Chong chuckled and shook his head, “Even if I go, I’d have to suppress my cultivation. Besides, I’m already a core disciple—I don’t need to compete with the junior Foundation Establishment disciples for resources.”

“You’re quite generous. Very well, we’ll do as you say. Add Bai Wei’s name to the list and prepare an extra set of pills. I’ll speak to the sect master about this matter later.”

“There’s something else I need you to do. After you’re done here, head to Qingyun Peak and deliver this storage pouch to the new disciple, Ye Qingning.”

Xiao Chong nodded, already guessing that the pouch was a thank-you gift.

Word had already spread throughout the sect about the incident during the lightning tribulation. The spirit jade communication talismans were abuzz with discussion. Ye Qingning’s name had already made its way through the inner sect.

So even if Wan Zhao didn’t say who she was, he had already heard about her through the talismans.

After Xiao Chong left, Wan Zhao sent a voice transmission to Ye Qingning, only telling her that Bai Wei’s name had been added to the list—nothing more.

As for the pouch, it naturally contained spirit stones.

Wan Zhao hadn’t forgotten that her younger brother was a sword cultivator.

And sword cultivators… were the poorest of them all!

Wan Jin had poured all his spirit stones into his natal sword, and restoring his damaged soul had also cost a fortune. These spirit stones—let his big sister handle them.

—

Qingyun Peak.

By evening, Ye Qingning received the first bucket of gold of this life.

After the heavenly lightning tempered her body, the expelled impurities clung to her skin. The first thing she did after returning to her courtyard was take a bath.

Though she could’ve cast a few cleaning spells, it just didn’t feel the same without a good soak.

During her bath, she received Wan Zhao’s transmission saying that Bai Wei was now on the list. She immediately sent a message through her jade talisman to tell Bai Wei the good news.

Just as she finished tidying up, someone knocked on the courtyard gate. She instantly realized it must be the person Wan Zhao sent to deliver the spirit stones.

It was Xiao Chong from the Internal Affairs Hall. She wanted to invite him in for tea, but he seemed very busy and only said he’d come for tea next time before rushing off.

The system screamed in excitement—“Jackpot! You’re rich! Rich, I tell you!”

When Ye Qingning opened the storage pouch, she really did feel like she’d struck gold—inside were thirty thousand supreme-grade spirit stones!

Thirty thousand! And all supreme-grade!

It wasn’t like she had never seen so many spirit stones before—but in this lifetime, this was definitely a first.

The most she’d seen before was when Po-Fang (Shield-Breaking Poop-Scooping Sister) had spent ten thousand supreme-grade spirit stones to buy a supreme-grade talisman pen.

【Thirty thousand supreme-grade spirit stones! That’s pretty much what this system estimated. Ningning, just accept it—it’s what you deserve. After all, you saved Wan Jin’s life. If things had gone as they did in your past life, he would’ve surely died.】

【Saving a younger brother’s life for thirty thousand supreme-grade spirit stones? Totally worth it!】

Ye Qingning rolled her eyes at the stupid system. “Can you not talk like that? If you can’t speak properly, just donate your mouth. How can you compare spirit stones to a person’s life?”

It wasn’t about whether it was worth it or not. The spirit stones were simply Wan Zhao and Wan Jin’s way of expressing their gratitude. She hadn’t asked for anything specific and would’ve accepted any amount. They were simply settling a favor.

Now that she had spirit stones, she could repay her debt to that bad-tempered person. A life without debts was a light and easy one.

—

Two days later, the list of disciples heading to the Yunshan Secret Realm was officially announced. The very next morning, all the selected disciples gathered early in the inner sect plaza.

Though the secret realm wouldn’t open for another two days, the journey itself would take at least a day, so they would depart the day after the list was released.