Chapter 204: Chapter 202: The Grand Competition Begins

A thought stirred in Jiang Chen’s mind. He bonded with the Storage Ring and sent his Divine Thought Power seeping into it.

Just who was Qii Daotian?

This was, according to Lin Feifei, a legendary, peerless master whom even the Sect Master of the Saint Martial Sword Sect had to address as "senior."

’How could the discipleship gifts he’d specially prepared for me be simple?’

The Storage Ring flashed, and three items appeared before Jiang Chen.

The first item was an Identity Token, on which was written the single character "Qii."

’This is clearly Qii Daotian’s Identity Token from the Saint Martial Sword Sect!’

Jiang Chen looked at Qii Daotian in confusion. "Master, this is your Identity Token. Why are you giving it to me?"

"I already have one foot in the grave, so I have no use for those Contribution Points anymore. But you’re different. You’re at a stage of rapid advancement. Whether for Cultivation Resources or other things, these Contribution Points will be a great help to you. That’s why I’m giving it to you. However, I’m not just handing it over without conditions!"

Qii Daotian smiled and continued, "I’ve placed three seals on this Identity Token. You can open the first seal at the True Martial Realm to get a portion of the Contribution Points. The second seal can only be opened when you reach the Heavenly Destiny Realm. As for the final seal, you’ll need to be in the Union Palace Realm to open it!"

Qii Daotian had been around for even longer than the Sect Master of the Saint Martial Sword Sect.

Given his status and power, the Contribution Points he had accumulated over a lifetime were practically immeasurable.

Jiang Chen easily opened the first seal. The balance of Contribution Points inside made his hand tremble. ’Ones, tens, hundreds, thousands... one million Contribution Points? Holy shit! I worked my ass off to reach the twenty-seventh floor of the Earth Martial Hall and only got ten thousand Contribution Points as a reward. And this is just from the first seal Master left!’

One million Contribution Points was not to be underestimated. Many Elders at the Heavenly Destiny Realm could never accumulate that many in their entire lives!

’With these one million Contribution Points, I won’t have to worry about Cultivation Resources at all, at least not before breaking through to the Heavenly Destiny Realm.’

Jiang Chen looked at Qii Daotian, his face filled with excitement.

’I just became his disciple, and Qii Daotian is already sparing no effort to cultivate me, even giving me all the Contribution Points he’s accumulated in his lifetime. What a profound debt of gratitude this is!’

’After all, although Qii Daotian made it sound casual, saying he had one foot in the grave, with the amount of Contribution Points he possessed, he could have at least exchanged them for some Life-extending Divine Medicine in the Saint Martial Sword Sect!’

’But he didn’t. Instead, he’s using all his Contribution Points to cultivate me.’

Jiang Chen clenched his fists, silently engraving this act of kindness in his heart.

Qii Daotian’s murky eyes seemed to see through people’s hearts. As if he had read Jiang Chen’s mind, a gratified smile appeared on his face. He continued, "As for this second gift, I deliberated for a long time before finally deciding to give it to you!"

It was a transparent Crystal Hexagram that radiated a seven-colored light.

The moment he took the Hexagram in his hand, an icy sensation spread through his body and straight into his brain.

It made Jiang Chen’s thoughts clearer and calmer.

Qii Daotian said, "This is a Divine Thought Relic, a treasure I came across by chance long ago. It’s a crystal formed from the condensed lifelong Divine Thought Power of a Senior Divine Thought Master after they passed away. I’ve observed that your Divine Thought fluctuations are far beyond that of an ordinary person, so you must have also awakened your Divine Thought Power. Refining this should give your Divine Thought Power a significant boost and save you decades of hard cultivation."

’What an incredible gift!’

’This is simply an incredible gift!’

When ordinary Divine Thought Masters die, their Divine Thought Power can’t condense into a crystal at all; it just dissipates with the wind.

Only the Divine Thought of a Tier Four or higher Divine Thought Grandmaster has a chance of condensing into a Divine Thought Relic.

’There aren’t any Tier Four Divine Thought Masters in the entire Saint Martial Dynasty!’

’This is probably the only Divine Thought Relic in the Saint Martial Dynasty, and Qii Daotian gave it to me. And it’s the treasure I need most right now.’

Jiang Chen sighed in his heart. ’Master’s kindness... I can never repay it in this lifetime!’

His gaze fell upon the last gift.

This was also a Jade Bottle.

Inside the bottle was a Seven-Colored Spirit Pill. Strange runes seemed to swirl upon its surface. Jiang Chen looked at Qii Daotian in confusion, "Master, what is this?"

"This is a Sixth-Grade pill called the Nirvana Pill. When you consume it, it will merge with your body. But you won’t be able to fully refine it. It will lie dormant inside you until... you face a fatal accident, when your life hangs by a thread. Only then will it be fully absorbed by you, granting you a chance at Nirvana Rebirth!" Qii Daotian said with a calm expression.

But his words stirred up a monstrous wave in Jiang Chen’s heart.

’A Sixth-grade Spirit Pill!’

’Nirvana Rebirth!’

’Isn’t this the same as having an extra life?’

This was enough to drive anyone mad.

Jiang Chen was certain that even Overlord Level experts at the Union Palace Realm would be moved by this Nirvana Pill, even fighting for it at all costs.

’After all, Bai Changsheng lost his life over a single Mixed Element Golden Pill, and in front of the Nirvana Pill, the Mixed Element Golden Pill is nothing but trash!’

’Qii Daotian is actually willing to give this to me?’

Jiang Chen’s face was filled with disbelief.

Qii Daotian wore a calm smile, his murky eyes now clear and without any impurities. He ruffled Jiang Chen’s hair and chuckled, "Little one, I’ve had three major ups and downs in my life, equivalent to living through three lifetimes. I’ve grown accustomed to the sorrows of parting and have watched friends, family, and loved ones leave me one by one. I’m tired. I don’t have the energy to go through another life. I’d rather give this chance to you, Qii Daotian’s one and only disciple!"

The smile on Qii Daotian’s face grew even gentler. "Little one, a master can only open the door; the path of cultivation is one you must walk yourself. This is as much as I can help you. The road ahead is yours to travel and conquer. You just need to remember one thing: at least within this Cloud Domain, you can go out and do as you please. Even if you poke a hole in the sky of the Cloud Domain, I will be here to hold it up for you!"

His gaze suddenly became incredibly sharp, like two terrifying beams of light shooting toward the heavens, seemingly piercing through the thick cloud cover.

Qii Daotian’s voice, resonant and powerful, boomed in Jiang Chen’s ears like rolling thunder. "Little one, a man in this world must stand tall between heaven and earth, have a clear conscience, press forward relentlessly, and be fearless in heart! You must remember, you are Qii Daotian’s disciple. As long as I am here, the sky of this Cloud Domain will not fall!"

At that moment, Jiang Chen felt as if Qii Daotian had transformed into an incomparably magnificent giant, a god protecting him.

He was incredibly moved.

Growing up, aside from his father, Qii Daotian was the only person who had ever made him feel safe, the only one he could trust with an open heart.

Jiang Chen took a deep breath and nodded firmly at Qii Daotian. "Rest assured, Master. I will not disappoint you!"

"Good, good, good... HAHAHAHA..."

Qii Daotian laughed heartily and turned to enter the small hut.

Leaving Jiang Chen alone in the valley, clenching his fists, his eyes brimming with a fiery fighting spirit. ’Rest assured, Master. I will definitely not tarnish your name.’

He then sat down cross-legged.

The first thing he did was, naturally, consume the Nirvana Pill. The Nirvana Pill transformed into a fiery stream of energy that flowed throughout his body, merging into him. 𝒇𝒓𝙚𝒆𝔀𝓮𝓫𝒏𝓸𝙫𝓮𝓵.𝓬𝙤𝙢

Just as Qii Daotian had said, the Nirvana Pill had no immediate effect. It simply lay dormant within his body. Unless he faced a life-or-death crisis, taking it was like not taking it at all.

Afterward, Jiang Chen took out the Divine Thought Relic.

’This is the relic of a Tier Four Spirit Level Divine Thought Master. Even if most of its Divine Thought Power has dissipated, it’s still enough to raise my own Divine Thought Power by several levels.’

Jiang Chen began to devour it frantically. Divine Thought Power surged like a sea, merging into his body.

At the same time, he was also rapidly refining the Mixed Element Golden Pill.

It took a full ten days before he had finally absorbed a small half of the Divine Thought Relic, reaching the limit of what he could bear. His Divine Thought Power had also advanced from Tier Two to Tier Two Advanced, just one step away from the Tier Three level. ’My physical body is still not strong enough to support such immense Divine Thought Power. It seems that after the new disciple competition, I’ll have to find a way to advance the Divine Demon Tyrant Body to the Third Stage Realm.’

’However, the most important thing right now is to break through to the True Martial Realm Ninth Stage.’

A sharp glint flashed through Jiang Chen’s eyes.

These ten days of hard cultivation had raised his Divine Thought Power to Tier Two High Level and also accelerated the refinement of his Mixed Element Golden Pill, finally bringing him to the critical point of the True Martial Realm Ninth Stage.

’Ninth True Essence Spirit Sea, condense!’

Jiang Chen shot into the sky. The Profound Yellow Undying Technique began to circulate wildly as eight True Essence Spirit Seas soared up to circle around him. Through continuous condensation and absorption, the ninth True Essence Spirit Sea slowly took shape. It took a full day and night before it was completely formed.

The nine ultimate True Essence Spirit Seas orbited him like satellites, with Jiang Chen protected at the center.

’I’ve finally stepped into the True Martial Realm Ninth Stage. My Divine Thought Power has also risen to Tier Two High Level, and I’ve mastered Tier Two Water Sword Intent. Adding in my Fire Sword Intent and Wind Sword Intent, I now possess the Three Lives Sword Intent. With my current strength, I can even fight and defeat a master at the Heavenly Destiny Realm Fourth Stage. Jiang Ziyou, so what if you have Lan Haichen and the Celestial Alliance behind you? The time of the Celestial Fate Hunting will be the day you journey to the Yellow Springs!’

Jiang Chen clenched his fists tightly, a cold light flickering in his eyes.

Just then...

DONG—DONG—DONG—

A series of bell chimes, as resonant as a great temple bell, suddenly echoed throughout the Outer Sect. Countless Outer Sect Disciples stopped what they were doing and looked toward the Earth Martial Hall.

The Outer Sect competition was finally about to begin!