Chapter 22: Fortune and Misfortune Intertwined

“This sinister art of stealing the heavens and swapping the sun is truly venomous to the extreme!”

Meng Han could not help but sigh. Thinking of the Liao siblings, he estimated they had already become ghosts under Yue Chuan's hands. With lingering fear in his heart, he said, “It is fortunate we eliminated him today. If this evil art were to spread, there is no telling how much chaos it would cause!”

He then looked toward Zhao Chun and inquired, “Did anything happen to you?”

“He...” Zhao Chun touched her dantian, hesitating. “He extracted my Wood Spiritual Root. I do not know if it will affect my cultivation...”

Meng Han’s expression turned solemn. He had never encountered such a situation and could not make sense of it. “Once we return to the sect, I will take you to the elders to see what they have to say.”

That was the only option. Zhao Chun was not overly nervous; when she had just activated her spiritual power to accelerate the absorption of medicinal properties, although she could no longer sense the Wood-attribute spiritual qi, the Gold and Fire energies had not declined. Instead, they had become even more vigorous.

A surprising thought rose in her mind, though she did not know if it was true; she would have to wait until she returned to the sect to find out.

Yue Chuan had once been a Yuan-level Great Cultivator, but he had spent half his life drifting without support, struggling and hiding to recover his cultivation. Most of the wealth he had accumulated had been squandered. However, even a starving camel is larger than a horse; the two of them still managed to divide twenty pieces of spiritual jade each and over a thousand essence stones.

It was worth mentioning that Yue Chuan had one more bag of imitation Flame Pilllets. These were useful to early-stage Qi Refinement cultivators but quite ineffective against those in the middle or late stages. Meng Han found them of little value, so he gave them all to Zhao Chun.

As for the storage pouch, it was intended for the Yuan-level stage. If Zhao Chun kept it herself, she might not be able to protect it, so she declined. As a token of gratitude, Meng Han gave her all of his spiritual jade and essence stones.

Zhao Chun weighed the cloth bag at her waist; it was merely an ordinary object that bulged when filled. Now that she had suddenly become wealthy, she had to consider buying a proper storage bag.

The two exited the cave, searched around, and turned into a dark tunnel, where they discovered a pointed bronze pagoda. This was Yue Chuan's life-bound magic tool; since he was dead, the pagoda was useless.

The person inside the tower was released by Meng Han. Sitting on the ground in a daze, the person only realized they had been saved upon seeing the two of them.

Feng Sanchu hurriedly thanked them, and upon learning the tragic news of the Liao siblings' deaths, was overcome with grief.

When asking Hong Qian, they learned that Madam Hong had been terrified within the tower and had gone mad, muttering incoherently. Hong Qian supported her mother, but her expression grew firm. She bowed deeply to the two of them in thanks; in a single night, she was entirely different from the young girl Zhao Chun remembered hanging from the tree.

The group rushed back to the Gathering City. The Hong family home had already been ransacked, leaving nothing but a mess on the floor.

A tall, round-faced man stood before the main gate—it was the steward, Xiaoshuang. He had been guarding the place all along. Seeing the Hong mother and daughter return safely, he rushed forward in surprise and said, “Miss! Madam!”

Madam Hong’s eyes were vacant. She leaned into her daughter's arms, silent, her body only twitching slightly.

“Only you are left...” Hong Qian’s eyes were filled with sorrow. Without explaining in detail, she led the group into the house.

Xiaoshuang had collected the remains of Hong Qisheng, and the inner room had been roughly cleaned.

Hong Qian had already guessed her father had been murdered, but now was not the time for grief. Forcing back her tears, she said, “My father is dead, and the house has been looted. We cannot provide the promised remuneration to the immortals immediately, but please rest assured, once the family is settled, the payment will be delivered to the Lingzhen Sect without a single cent missing.”

Zhao Chun and the others had no heart for this. Seeing Hong Qian's persistence, they promised to only take the two portions under the Liao siblings' names and deliver them to their parents.

“My father had many enemies in the Gathering City. I intend to sell the estate and seek refuge with his former mortal family so I can care for my mother. Because of this, there is one matter I must entrust to the immortals.” Hong Qian took a necklace from her neck and handed it to Meng Han. “The gems embedded in it can reveal text when illuminated by moonlight. That is the immortal Daoist method—the root of my Hong family's calamity.”

“Both my mother and I are mortals, and the men we chose for marriage have all fled. Since it would only bring disaster if kept, it is better to gift it to the immortals. It is both an apology and a gift of thanks.”

If this Daoist method were presented to the sect by the three of them, it would count as a contribution. Meng Han nodded in agreement and tucked the necklace into his pouch.

The trip to the Gathering City concluded amidst both gains and losses.

Zhao Chun bought some small items for Zhou Pianran and entrusted Meng Han with five pieces of spiritual jade to help her purchase a storage bag.

She had no background and low cultivation; not only were channels hard to find, but she also had to understand the principle of not flaunting her wealth.

It was five days later when they returned to Lingzhen. Because they had turned in the Hong family's Daoist method, each of the three received five hundred essence stones. Only then did Zhao Chun realize that while such a method was precious to rogue cultivators, it was not uncommon within the Lingzhen Sect; it was rated as a high-grade Mortal-rank method and placed in the Myriad Treasury Pavilion.

Feng Sanchu went to visit the parents of the Liao siblings, while Meng Han took Zhao Chun toward Elder Lin of the Outer Sect.

He seemed quite familiar with Elder Lin, entering without being summoned.

“Weren't you going to Huiming Villa to collect spiritual fruits? You returned quite quickly,” Elder Lin asked in surprise, stroking his long beard.

Meng Han sat down with Zhao Chun and said, “Some things happened, and we nearly lost our lives. We can discuss the spiritual fruits later; I only recently reached the ninth layer, so there is no rush.”

“You are Earth-attribute; it would be difficult for a cultivator of the same level to harm you, let alone kill you,” he frowned. “Did you encounter a Foundation Establishment cultivator?”

“We encountered a madman!” Meng Han did not hide anything and told him about Yue Chuan.

Elder Lin jumped up from his seat in shock. “Heaven protect you two, for letting that evil demon perish! This matter must be reported to the sect so the Sect Leader and the Inner Sect Elders know!” He paced back and forth, then pulled Zhao Chun closer. “Normally, if a person's dantian is destroyed, they lose all cultivation immediately, yet you survived. I have never seen such a situation...”

“He only took my Wood Spiritual Root... was there anything else unusual?”

Zhao Chun replied, “When Yue Chuan tried to take another spiritual root, he suffered a backlash from my Gold and Fire spiritual roots, and was then killed by Senior Brother Meng.” What she said was the truth, though she concealed the mutation of the bead.

“Backlash? Has there been anything different in your usual cultivation?”

“My Gold and Fire spiritual roots are perfectly balanced, and they seem to be merging.”

After thinking it over, Elder Lin sighed. “Both of these types of spiritual roots possess fierce offensive power. Perhaps after losing the Wood attribute to neutralize them, they bolstered each other's violent nature, causing the evil demon to be consumed by his own fire.”

“Though I do not know what the effect on you will be, if this has turned you into a dual Gold-Fire spiritual root, it could be considered a blessing in disguise.” He led the two to the Spirit-Reflecting Shadow Wall. “Come, let me re-test you to see what the result is.”

It was still the familiar gold and red colors, but this time there was no light green. The two equally brilliant colors divided the shadow wall evenly.

Elder Lin felt a mix of joy and worry. He patted Zhao Chun's shoulder; having a talent with dual spiritual roots was a good thing for the sect, but since this dual root had come in such an unusual way, he did not dare to be too optimistic about potential complications in her future cultivation.

“I will report the matter regarding you and Yue Chuan tomorrow. Ordinarily, those with dual spiritual roots enter the Inner Sect, but the specifics depend on the Sect Leader's decision. Wait for news, but do not hold too high your hopes.”

Zhao Chun nodded. Entering the Inner Sect would be best, but even if she didn't, she could still cultivate. Once she broke through to Foundation Establishment, she could become an Inner Sect disciple then.

“Dual spiritual roots entering the Inner Sect has been a rule since the sect's founding. Rules are rules; they cannot be easily changed.” Meng Han smiled at her and raised an eyebrow. “I believe Junior Sister Zhao will definitely succeed. When that time comes, I'll have to rely on you to look after me!”

“Senior Brother Meng and I have shared life and death. Once you reach Foundation Establishment, you will be a legitimate Inner Sect disciple; I will certainly have to rely on your protection.”

After a few more words of conversation, the two bid farewell to Elder Lin and went their separate ways.

The group in Xuancao Garden had been waiting for Zhao Chun. Seeing her push the door open, they immediately surrounded her, asking in detail what had happened.

It turned out that the news of the Liao siblings' deaths had frightened them terribly. They had first asked others about Zhao Chun's whereabouts and, upon learning she was alive, feared she might be injured, so they had taken leave to wait for her in the courtyard.

Zhao Chun told them a selective version of the events, which left the four of them pale with fright. Although they marveled that she had gained dual spiritual roots through misfortune, they feared for her life and advised, “Whether you enter the Inner Sect or reach Foundation Establishment is a matter for later. You must never risk your life like that again!”

She agreed outwardly, but sighed inwardly. The path of cultivation was a struggle against Heaven and man; without risking everything, how could one find a way forward?