Chapter 104: The Issue of Face

  Su Qinglin stayed in Xuanji City for one night and left early the next morning.

  When they parted ways, Su Che gave 'Old Dad' a Qian Kun bag containing his own low-grade magical instruments that he had eliminated, 500 spirit stones, and special products from the Yin Wind Gorge worth 1,000 spirit stones.

  These things, to Su Che, were just a small matter, but for the declining Su family, they were a considerable fortune. Moreover, since Su Che became an inner disciple of Tianxuan Sect, it also made Su Qinglin's father proud of his son, and this time when he returned to the clan, the competition for the next head of the clan was already without suspense.

  For now, it seems that for the Su family to rise up, they must rely on Su Che's support. Therefore, having Su Qinglin as the head of the clan is also a matter of course...

  Of course, Su Che thought that these things had little to do with himself, and as long as he didn't exert himself too much, occasionally lending a hand wasn't a big deal.

  When Su Che returned to the Ling Grass Medicine Garden of Xuanji Peak, there was also a little girl by his side. The two arrived at the second floor residence of the garden.

  "What a lovely little girl..."

  She carefully examined it and immediately asked: "Is this your sister?"

  After practicing qigong, the cultivator can master some techniques of Fahui, which allows them to see things that ordinary people cannot. At this moment, Linglong could sense that the little girl in front of her had a blood relationship with Su Che.

  "Yes." Su Che smiled and nodded: "Isn't it a common practice in our Tianxuan Sect to send family children to the Wumen Sect? Today, I've learned from them too."

  Linglong Ice and Snow understood Su Che's intention immediately, still as straightforward as ever, nodded and said: "Alright, leave it to me, I'll take good care of her."

  After Su Che's introduction, Su Nian'er said with a smile: "Thank you, Linglong Shijie."

  With Ling's care, it is no problem for Nian'er to become an outer disciple. On the Xuanji Peak, no one dares to bully her either.

  After that, Linglong also mentioned the matter of Xiao Muxian's boundary to Su Che. She said in a low voice: "Yesterday, I heard my old man say that the quota for the ten disciples who entered the Xiao Muxian boundary this time has been determined, and you are among them."

  Su Che nodded with a smile.

  "I really can't understand, you think you're so lucky and invincible, that no matter how you die, you won't die, right?" Ling's voice was slightly annoyed.

  "Sister, the reason is simple." Su Che replied calmly: "With my qualifications, if I don't have courage and luck, what can I rely on to go further on the path of cultivation? The Small Mysterious Realm tests exactly that - my courage and luck. This trial, I'm really willing to give it a try."

  "Alas, be that as it may." Lingjong sighed softly: "Who can predict what luck you'll have; however, in terms of bravery, I'm far from your equal."

  Ever since being stimulated by Su Che's breakthrough, after more than a year of diligent practice, Ling Long has also become a cultivator of the 9th layer of Qi Refining. However, it is also because she fears being affected by the disaster of the Xiao Mi Xian realm that in recent months, she too has stopped cultivating, fearing that if she accidentally advances to the Great Perfection of Qi Refining, she will be chosen as one of the sacrifices to enter the Xiao Mi Xian realm.

  Su Che asked again: "The ten quotas for my sect are all from the ten major peaks' Qi-refining disciples, right? Shaozi?"

  "No."

  Lingyong shook his head and said, "Only seven people were selected from the top ten main peaks. The Tianji Peak, Tianlu Peak, and Xuan Yuan Peak did not select any suitable disciples; there are two more quotas, which were selected from ordinary outer door disciples, who are all very old and have no hope of building their foundation in this life. Even if they die in the Small Mysterious Immortal Realm, it won't be a big regret; the last quota really couldn't be found, so the Sect Master had to choose one from his family's children, a ninth-level Qi-refining guy, just to make up the number."

  "Have you even sacrificed your own family's children?" Su Che was shocked: "It can be said that being a leader of a sect seems glorious, but it's not easy to do. Everything has to be set as an example by oneself."

  "What a role model" Linglong said with a big guts, without any reserve, "That guy who cultivated to the 9th layer is a complete scoundrel, committing an unforgivable sin. Even if he didn't go to Xiaomixian Realm, the Sect Master would personally slap him to death."

  "So it was."

  Su Che couldn't help but smile, however, in his heart he was thinking: "If the Mystic Peak didn't have me stepping forward, it's possible that even Master wouldn't be able to find a suitable person..."

  At this moment, Su Nian'er, who was standing quietly beside him, stared at the round big eyes, listening carefully to every word that Su Che and Ling Long had said, and knew that Su Che's brother seemed to be going to participate in a very, very dangerous sect activity. Listening to Ling Long's tone, it should be easy to die...

  Suddenly, Su Nian'er's heart tightened with worry.

  Although Su Che doesn't remember her, in this little girl's heart, 'Brother Su Che' carries a very heavy weight and has always been the idol of the younger generation in the family.

  The declining Su family, among the old and young three generations, only one Su Che had the qualifications to go to the Tianxuan Sect to fight. On that day, when Su Che left the house, nearly a hundred main members of the Su family, from top to bottom, sent him off for dozens of miles, his back, took away the hopes and blessings of the whole family.

  Su Nian'er and several younger brothers and sisters cried even harder, because their 'leader', the head of the children, seemed to be unable to return for many years...

  So when Su Che bid farewell and came out of Linglong's residence, Xiao Yatou also ran out.

  "Su Che Gege..."

  The worry in her heart, she didn't know how to express it, but those big eyes had already revealed the words in her heart.

  Su Che understood this, and his heart was also deeply moved. He raised his hand and gently tapped the tip of her small, upturned nose, saying softly: "Niang'er, do you believe in your brother?"

  The little girl nodded vigorously.

  "That's good." Su Che smiled and said: "I promise you, I will take care of you until the day you become a great master in the Yuan Ying period."

  "Uh-huh," Little Maid nodded vigorously.

  Su Che thought this was just a phrase he used to coax children, but unexpectedly, these words were forever etched in Su Nian'er's heart.

  ……

  Two months passed in the blink of an eye, and on this day, Xuanji Zun brought Su Che out of the mountain gate to the plain outside Xuanshu City. There, a huge flying shuttle treasure had already been parked, said to be the flight treasure of some Taishang elder.

  This time's trip to the Small Xianyu Realm will be led by four prenatal Taishang elders, and all ten of the main peaks' Zun will set out, leaving only the Sect Master Zun and the remaining Golden Elixir elders to guard the sect.

  Other super sects will also send out the same lineup, everyone is elite and it's all the same situation where the main camp is empty, no one needs to worry about anyone, no one needs to care about anyone, and it has become a 50-year once-in-a-lifetime honeymoon period for the three tribes of human, demon and magic in the cultivation world.

  Su Che followed Xuanji Zun into the silver-white flying shuttle treasure, and the internal space was extremely spacious, carrying hundreds of people without any problem.

  Also saw a few others who were also in the same state of "delivering death" with their faces not looking too good.

  Two older outer sect disciples had stiff expressions and dull eyes, completely a numb look that seemed to have given up on life and death.

  There were three inner disciples meditating with their eyes closed, but from their slightly disordered breathing, it was clear that they were merely forcing themselves to calm down.

  The other two inner disciples had complex expressions and looked around nervously, as if they might flee at any moment.

  There was also a young man who had cultivated his Qi to the ninth level, crouching in the corner with a pale face, muttering to himself as if he had mental problems...

  After waiting for a while, the last two 'death messengers' also followed their master into the Flying Shuttle Treasure, and their expressions were not much better.

  This made Xuanji Zun feel a sense of pride, because anyone with discerning eyes could see that only his own disciple Su Che was naturally calm and composed, with an air of tranquility as if he were just going out for a casual stroll and would be back soon.

  Although it's hard to predict the outcome of this treasure hunt, Su Che's demeanor at this moment has greatly enhanced the prestige of Xuanji Zun.

  The other nine great nobles also noticed Su Che and couldn't help but start sizing him up carefully.

  "I said..."

  Xuanji Zunzhe suddenly became displeased and said in a deep voice: "Several fellow disciples, what are you staring at my disciple for? Don't scare him."

  The Tianwu Zunzhe, who had long recognized Su Che, chuckled and said: "Junior brother, I've long understood the courage of this precious disciple of yours. If we were to take a few glances at him, he would definitely not be intimidated."

  Xuanji Zunzhe said with a hint of pride: "This disciple of mine is extremely filial, and had previously volunteered to enter the Xiao Mi Xianjing to search for what I needed. I think it would be hard to stop him even if I wanted to."

  The nine great masters nodded and smiled on the surface, but in their hearts, they were all clear that Xuanji Zun was showing off his ability to make people willing to die for him.

  The masters of the ten main peaks of the Tianxuan Sect are all at the same level of cultivation as the late Golden Elixir, and their status is also equal. Although it is an open competitive relationship within the sect, it is difficult to distinguish between strong and weak, so most of the time, they are competing for face.

  A dispute over face, in the eyes of ordinary people, is a trivial matter, not as good as a big pie; but in the world of cultivation, the higher one's cultivation and the more prestigious their status, the more they pay attention to the issue of face, often leading to a great war.

  In ancient times, there was a saying that passed down: when cultivators reached the highest realm, what they competed for was no longer material resources, but rather the elusive and ethereal luck of heaven.

  This leads to another saying: Practitioners who gain face will also gain good fortune; losing face will have a great impact on one's own fortune...

  The top ten masters, also stuck in the late Jindan stage, cannot make progress, and whether they can successfully advance to the Yuan Ying stage has become a crucial factor. As a result, anything related to "qi Yun" or "Yun Qi", they will be very particular about it, and of course, this includes face as well.

  What happened next was beyond Master Xu's expectation, something even more face-saving for himself had emerged.

  PS: The first update after midnight has been sent, and the coffee is about to fall asleep. I hope that when I wake up from my nap, I can see a miraculous scene of hundreds of monthly votes surging in. Haha, I guess that's still not awake, still dreaming.

  A few hundred is definitely unrealistic, ten or eight would be very satisfying for coffee, thank you very much.