Chapter Sixteen: Washing the Marrow

  There are countless cultivation sects in this world, among which the "sect" is the largest, followed by the "school", and the "gate" is the smallest. A sect governs several schools, and a school governs several gates. However, in the secular world, ordinary people only come into contact with the gate, and have no chance to come into contact with the sect or school.

  Shàng Pài refers to the sects that directly govern the Qingyu Men.

  Inside the grand hall, the four elders and others looked at the scrolls in their hands, and they couldn't help but feel shocked. They knew that Shang Guan Xue was from the Upper Sect and had a simple identity, but they never thought that she could actually let the Upper Sect increase an additional quota for Qing Yu Men's direct disciples. It is known that cultivating a direct disciple requires a huge amount of resources, including spiritual pills, spiritual stones, and talismans, etc. The Upper Sect allocates cultivation resources to each sect according to their quotas every year. In this era where resources are scarce, having one more quota means the Upper Sect has to provide an additional share of cultivation resources.

  Of course, resources are secondary, what's important is the special status of being a direct disciple. Once you have this status, it's equivalent to being an aristocrat in cultivation. Only direct disciples have the qualifications to enter the Upper Sect and continue cultivating. Taking a step back, even if they're unlucky and can't enter the Upper Sect, joining the Holy Temple or the Sacred Hall will be much easier than for ordinary disciples.

  It is precisely because of this that the quota for direct disciples becomes so important.

  Seeing the scroll with the intention of the Upper House, Song Lao said in a neutral tone, "Since there is the intention of the Upper House and the Jinwu Grand Competition will continue to be held every five years, I have no opinion on the matter of Shangguan Men's master choosing this son."

  "Song Elder, you!" The Fourth Elder Lü Huàiyè glared at Song Elder with anger, then looked at Shàngguān Qìxuě and sneered, "The Master of the Shàngguān Sect is indeed omnipotent! He actually allowed our Qingyù Gate to increase a quota for a personally transmitted disciple, I admire him, admire him!"

  Shangguan Qixue remained as calm and collected as ever, standing up and walking over slowly. The four elders and others successively gave way, not daring to block her path.

  Song Chang stood at the entrance of the grand hall, gazing at Tang Qing who was following behind Shangguan Qixue. He couldn't help but furrow his brow deeply. Earlier, he had been secretly observing this young man who had been chosen by the master of the Shangguan family. He discovered that from start to finish, this young man had never spoken a word, and his expression was always as calm as a gentle breeze on a cloudy day, giving people the feeling that he was just an onlooker, as if the events unfolding before him were none of his concern.

  This young man is so calm and composed at such a young age, his temperament is truly exceptional. If he can be guided properly, he will surely excel in the future. Unfortunately, his innate talent is... unfortunately, it's really unfortunate.

  Shaking his head, Song elder sighed and also left.

  Inside the grand hall, only four elders and one party were left.

  "Mr. Lü, what do you think should be done about this matter?"

  Another elder said, "Unexpectedly, Shangguan Qixue's matter is so big that it can let the top give our Qingyu Gate an additional direct transmission quota. In this way, the Jinwu Grand Competition will continue to be held, and we don't have to worry about anything. Everything is still going according to plan. What do you think?"

  "Now that Shangguan Qixue has given us an additional quota for Qingyu Men, why should we still follow the original plan...” The four elders stroked their goatee beards, with a mysterious smile at the corner of their mouths, as if they were thinking deeply.

  "Fourth Elder, what are you talking about? Are you thinking of giving up? We've already negotiated with those families in Yongyang City!"

  "Give up? Ha ha, how could I give up?" The four elders' smiles grew thicker as they said, "The once-in-five-years Jinwu Grand Competition, just one quota for direct disciples has already given us a lot. What if this time's Jinwu Grand Competition is two quotas?"

  "Two quotas?" The several elders present were all old and cunning, and the Fourth Elder only mentioned it slightly, they guessed what he meant, saying: "But another quota, Upper Official Guixue has already appointed that little kid."

  "Heh heh…… If that kid had a bit of talent, this quota would naturally not be returned. Fortunately, fortunately, that kid's talent is not even comparable to an ordinary disciple. In that case, wanting to take back that one quota from Shangguan Xue's hands is not impossible." The Fourth Elder said with a profound and mysterious tone, "In that case, later you go notify all the personally taught disciples, as well as the several popular disciples participating in this Martial Arts Competition, and at the same time let them stir up all the outer sect's registered disciples."

  "I'll go inform the Great Elder and tell him about this. Hehe, facing the doubts of all the disciples in front of Qingyu Gate, and with the Great Elder stepping forward, it seems that even if Shangguan Qianxue has someone from the upper ranks backing her up, she will still have to hand over another quota!"

  The four elders smiled with satisfaction after saying this.

  "Fantastic! It's really fantastic!"

  ……

  Back to the yard, the sun had just risen, and the morning sunlight was always so bright and warm. Tang Jing naturally wouldn't miss this good opportunity to bask in the sun, leaning against the wall, sitting on a stool, preparing to take a nap, but as soon as he closed his eyes, he sensed someone coming in.

  It wasn't someone else, but rather Shangguan Qixue herself. Earlier in the grand hall, she had been arguing with those elders, leaving her in a terrible mood. Now, seeing Tang Jing lying there so leisurely and carefree, sunbathing, a hint of disgust flashed across her beautiful eyes. In a cold and detached tone, she said, "You've taken the Huajiu Dan. Now I'll come to help you cultivate and assist in catalyzing the Huajiu Dan, thereby helping you cleanse your marrow." Her voice was icy, devoid of any emotional color, as if she were simply informing someone of a very ordinary matter ahead of time. Whether or not he listened, she wouldn't care; she only needed to inform him.

  Shampoo?

  Tang Qing curled his lips, this girl was really willing to spend a lot of money to help him build his foundation! Helping someone wash their marrow was extremely draining on one's energy, however, he was very clear about his own situation - washing his marrow would have no effect whatsoever. Of course, he didn't refuse, washing his marrow might not have any impact on his innate talent, but it could still help him recover his physical body, even if the effect was very weak, at least there was some effect!

  As expected, after Guan Qishuang finished speaking, she didn't wait for Tang Qing's response at all. She directly took action and slapped her palm on Tang Qing's head, saying indifferently, "Don't move, otherwise you will die with seven orifices bleeding!"

  Tang Qing didn't move, sensing the power that Shangguan Qianxue was pouring into his body, as if watching a fragment of a movie with ease and naturalness.

  Shangguan Qixue exhausted her own strength to help Tang Jing wash his marrow. As time passed, the sweat on her forehead gradually dripped down. After about an hour, her face turned pale and her eyebrows were deeply furrowed. Her eyes revealed shock and incredulity because just now she had used her own strength to completely catalyze the Huixu Dan in Tang Jing's body, but Tang Jing's roots didn't change at all.

  How did this happen?

  Shangguan Qixue had also helped others wash their marrow before, but this was her first time encountering such a situation.

  She tried again with a skeptical attitude, but the result was the same. Tang Jing's bones remained unchanged, still in that chaotic state.

  "Your qualifications are simply... simply..." Yu Guan Xue had run out of adjectives to describe Tang Jing's incredibly poor qualifications, and she could no longer maintain her composure. She covered her forehead, took a few steps back, feeling a wave of despair wash over her, getting a headache from anger, shaking her head without saying anything, and turned to leave.

  After Guan Xue left, Tang Qing hurriedly refined the power he had input into his body. After about three breaths, he opened his eyes and smacked his lips, saying, "Not bad, not bad! Comparable to several days of quiet meditation. If only I could wash my marrow a few more times."