Chapter 117: Stepping Back


    <span style="font-weight:400">All three artifact spirits were taken aback by Ruby’s demand. They stood still in shock for several moments before Green recovered. He spoke with indignation.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“We swore not to take another master! You can’t be seriously asking us to submit to this Energy Gathering realm br—”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Silence!” Blue chastised herpanion in green robes. “I apologize for his tone, but he isn’t entirely incorrect. Your master’s cultivation is too low to be able to control us.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Nonsense! Are you saying my master is unworthy of you? As far as I know, once you take him as your master, you’ll be able to absorb the energies from the outside world. It’ll solve your so-called crisis. It’s a win-win deal.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Umm, but he won’t be able to make use of us,” Orange nervously stated, getting quieter the more he spoke.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“That is but a temporary matter. My master will surely soar to great heights in due time. It is your fortune to be able to serve him.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">Ruby’s proud boasting had left the three lesser spirits to be speechless. They didn’t know how to refute the request. Even Li Lang didn’t dare intervene. He knew too little regarding how artifact spirits operated. He didn’t know if what Ruby said was true. If it really solved the three spirit’s predicament and also gained him a powerful artifact, it was in his best interest to let things continue their course.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“That…request is a little sudden for us,” Blue finally broke her silence. “While the three of us did decide not to take another master, we also vowed to our previous master that we would continue to pass on his sect’s legacy. Please give us some time to think it through.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“How dare—”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Ruby!” Li Lang interjected. “It’s fine. Give them some time.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“If you say so, Master.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">Li Lang exchanged nods with Blue.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“From what you guys told me, I’m not the one in a hurry here. You know where to find me.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Of course. I’ll bring you back for now.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">At her words, Blue flicked her sleeve, obscuring Li Lang’s vision. In the blink of an eye, Li Lang found himself back in his room. Ruby was still in his hand, along with the hat it was in.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Master, you didn’t need to be that nice to them, you know? They were in the wrong. We could’ve gotten them to submit to you right there and then.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Ruby, I understand you’re doing it for my good, but there’s no point in forcing others to submit. From my… limited experience, it’s never a good idea to force people to work for you. Give them some time first. If they don’te around, you can be more forceful.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">Having awoken from the possibility of owning this pocket realm, Li Lang could barely contain himself. It wasn’t because of the prospect of owning a powerful artifact. It was more due to all the knowledge that came along with it!


    <span style="font-weight:400">It was obvious The Great Trial of Water Crest had arge repository of cultivation-rted texts. Li Lang could only drool at all the possibilities that could unlock for him. That was why he was open to the idea of getting the spirits to submit to him even under duress. However, he knew forcing others was a suboptimal method, so he would allow them some time first as it wasn’t an urgent matter for him.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Having thought of all the new things he could learn, he quickly directed his attention to the new manual he received. Passing the fourth round of the brushweaving trial had rewarded him with the Elemental Condensing Brush technique.


    <span style="font-weight:400">He had only skimmed it for its capabilities, so he was eager to dive into it. As he perused through the texts, his mind continuously contemted how its contents could assist him in the fifth round.


    <span style="font-weight:400">While he hadn’t attempted it, Li Lang memorized what the fifth round required. It asked him to enchant a peak Mortal-grade artifact with three runes. It made him wonder if it really was a task that was much harder than thest.


    <em><span style="font-weight:400">This pocket realm should be quite dated, from apletely different age. Several ‘lost’ techniques given as rewards confirm this.</em>


    <span style="font-weight:400">Li Lang suspected the standards had changed over the years. Three rune inscriptions may have beenmon for Energy Gatherers living in the previous age. They may have still used various nts and Qi beast-based inks that allowed them to do what Li Lang had done. Otherwise, it would have been quite strict of them to put a task meant for Foundation Establishment cultivators as early as the fourth trial.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Nevertheless, it didn’t change the task Li Lang needed to aplish to pass the next round. It would take some time for Li Lang to learn more about enchantment, but he was eager to do so. Yi Lin hadn’t gone over the details on how to enchant yet, so it likely wasn’t a short process. It was also due to enchanting not being something expected of an apprentice.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Every artifact was valuable. The lowest among them were at the peak of Mortal-grade. It would be foolish to entrust these valuable assets to the hands of an apprentice.


    <span style="font-weight:400">While Li Lang waited for the three artifact spirits to deliberate, he resumed his usual routine. He cultivated and honed all his techniques every day, then went to socialize with his group. He never said anything about the spirits, as it wasn’t a done deal yet. Plus, he couldn’t exin how he managed the feat of possibly subduing the pocket realm without revealing Ruby.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Instead, he focused on asking Long Yi about his experience of breaking through to the seventh stage of the Energy Gathering realm. There was a huge divide from the sixth to the seventh stage. From the seventh stage onward, you would truly be one of the top experts among mortals. Along with it came the power to manipte your Qi from range.


    <span style="font-weight:400">With Long Yi having grade three aptitude, his experiences may not bepatible with Li Lang, but he still had to ask. Even if the path he had to take was different, the end goal was the same.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“So you’re saying once your body cultivation slowed, you began feeling your Qi staying connected with you from a small distance? Perhaps it’s because you had a lot of practice with your Terra Moon sh technique. I should practice my ranged techniques more. ” Li Lang ced a hand on his chin and pondered.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Yeah, it just happened. Then I simply needed to hold on to that feeling and tried to consciously extend that range.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">Li Lang asked Long Yi again and again, day after day. It was because Long Yi was the only person who cultivated in the orthodox way like he did. Combined with his higher aptitude, he was able to provide Li Lang with a lot of food for thought.


    <em><span style="font-weight:400">Interviewing one person isn’t enough. Just his experience may be able to help me get through this small bottleneck, but when ites time to challenge Foundation Establishment, I don’t feel confident at all.</em>


    <em><span style="font-weight:400">I have to get more information from various sources to help me unravel the future stages of cultivation. But the only people who practice orthodox cultivation methods are us three and those from the Peerless Gate. Maybe I should venture back into the righteous sect’s territories at some point…</em>


    <span style="font-weight:400">Other than exploring how to continue progressing with his cultivation, Li Lang spent his spare time investigating all the previous phenomena he wanted to test. There were things he could get help from the demonic cultivators around him.


    <span style="font-weight:400">The major one was the nature of spiritual roots. It had a direct corrtion to one’s aptitude. While Li Lang had conquered some of the weaknesses of his low talent with the Cleansing Drug, that only mattered for the Energy Gathering realm. In a way, he solved a symptom, not the root cause.


    <span style="font-weight:400">He still remembered the conversations he had with Elder Cao Mei about the various realms of cultivation. She had patiently exined to him various tidbits of knowledge in order to cate Li Lang into bing a full-time alchemist for her sect.


    <span style="font-weight:400">These conversations included how aptitude affected a cultivator when they were in the Foundation Establishment realm. While she hadn’t been that detailed in her exnations, it was enough for Li Lang to know that those of a higher aptitude could cultivate and recover their Qi faster.


    <span style="font-weight:400">In the Foundation Establishment realm, one would no longer suffer from Qi overdose. They were no longer mortal and could cultivate all day. The main issue they would face then was to find enough energy for them to absorb, and theirprehension of the world. The ambient Qi in the air would take far too long to satisfy their needs. This was the stage when they often consumed Qi stones to progress quickly.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Li Lang suspected all these things were also rted to the number of one’s spiritual roots. That was why he wanted to find a way to maybe attain more of them. Perhaps it could be transnted or grown. He didn’t know, but he did want to find out.


    <span style="font-weight:400">The first step to that was to start asking around. There were numerous cultivators around, and if hispanions weren’t enough, he could start asking the others within the pocket realm.


    <span style="font-weight:400">The only worry was his trial points. That was exactly why he reached out to the three artifact spirits once he had everything else in order.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Blue, can you hear me?” Li Lang muttered to himself in his room.


    <span style="font-weight:400">As he suspected, he immediately got a response. Blue lights flooded in from somewhere before forming into a girl.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Yes, what is it?”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“You guys are still thinking about our proposal, right?”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“...That’s correct. Please allow us some more time.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“It’s okay. I’m not here to rush you.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Then how can I help you?”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“I wanted to ask if you could stop my trial points from decreasing if I stop my current training.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Why would you—” Blue gulped dramatically while directing a cautious nce at Li Lang’s hat. “Nevermind. Your request is reasonable, considering we’re the ones making you wait. I ept.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">He grinned upon having earned the time to perform his research on other topics and was eager to jump straight into it. He nned to start his interviews with hispanions first, before approaching the other cultivators within the realm as he needed.


    <span style="font-weight:400">He was determined to make use of this opportunity where cultivators gathered and had ess to speak with them. Thinking up to that point, Li Lang realized he needed something to incentivize his helpers. While his acquaintances may agree to assist him, he couldn’t say the same for the others.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Blue, can you do one more thing for me as well?”