Chapter 294: 145. Breakthrough to Nascent Soul, the Righteous Path assembly, Demon Sect strikes ahead of time_2
Having descended from Fairy Cliff, Lin Xiao did not return to his dormitory. Instead, he traveled by Sword Control to his exclusive Blessed Abode—the Phantom Spirit Cave House—reserved for the Chief Disciple. Although everything was proceeding according to his plan, and Niu Batian had agreed to visit and formally identify Yuanyi in seven days, thereby eliminating the Sky Yin Blood Demon’s henchman first, Lin Xiao’s intuition was growing stronger. He always felt that even if Yuanyi was eliminated, the Eight Great Demon Sects were shattered, and he eventually faced off with the Sky Yin Blood Demon, it would not simply be a group battle! In the end, it would still depend on him, the Destiny Big Villain, to truly make a grand display! Therefore, before this, it was time for him to upgrade himself.
...
「Inside the Blessed Abode.」
Lin Xiao sat cross-legged, operating the Beiming Immortal Technique, yet his mind was ill at ease.
"This is not good," he thought. "The Five Sages are trying to use my impending wedding with Yurong to summon members of the Cihang Sword Sect and Kunlun Dao Sect up the mountain ahead of schedule. This already deviates from the original timeline... In this case, will the subplot concerning Youwei still occur?"
The more Lin Xiao thought about it, the more worried he became for his Third Junior Sister, Youwei.
Originally, in the novel’s plot, after Niu Batian of the Evil Extreme Sect captured Beacon City, the other Seven Great Demon Sects responded in succession, invading the Central Land on a large scale. Then, Sect Leader True Master Ziyun issued a call to action, sending letters to the leaders of the Righteous Path in the Eastern Region Cultivation World to gather at the Qinglan Sect and discuss a plan to exterminate the demons. It was on this timeline that the Cihang Sword Sect dispatched three sword-wielding Elders and Saintess Lin Tianxin, who were the first to arrive at the Qinglan Sect for the meeting. Saintess Lin Tianxin had a minor romantic subplot with the male protagonist, Ye Chen, but Lin Xiao was not interested in that at all. What he was truly worried about was the second group to attend the meeting: Daoist Xiao Cheng from the Kunlun Dao Sect. According to the original story, Xiao Cheng’s family and the Chu Family, Youwei’s family, had been friends for generations. Moreover, he and Youwei had a marriage contract arranged by their parents before they were born. However, after Youwei’s father died, she and her mother were bullied by their clansmen and ran away from home. The Xiao family, to which Xiao Cheng belonged, also gradually declined. Consequently, when the sixteen-year-old Xiao Cheng went to the Chu Family with the marriage contract to propose, the new Chu Family patriarch didn’t even bother to explain Youwei’s whereabouts and unilaterally annulled the marriage. Young Xiao Cheng’s dignity was shattered, and he was deeply struck by this blow. After swearing a blood oath, he joined the Kunlun Dao Sect. Initially, when Lin Xiao read this part, he thought this fellow was a secondary protagonist. He hadn’t expected Xiao Cheng to be just another errand person, a tool to provide experience points for the main protagonist. Just as Xiao Cheng, now a Daoist of the Kunlun Dao Sect, arrived at Taoyuan Village at the foot of the Qinglan Sect’s mountain, he heard the name ’Zither Heart and Sword Spirit Chu Youwei’ and discovered she was his betrothed! At this, Xiao Cheng’s blood rushed to his head. Youthful and impulsive, he decisively took the marriage contract and stormed into the Qinglan Sect, demanding an explanation from Chu Youwei. The outcome was, naturally, melodramatic yet plausible. Chu Youwei and Xiao Cheng, of course, failed to see eye to eye and ended up fighting. They battled fiercely, and Chu Youwei was severely injured, her life hanging by a thread. At the critical moment, Ye Chen happened to pass by. As an ordinary Disciple, he crushed Daoist Xiao Cheng of the Kunlun Dao Sect in front of everyone, drawing all attention. This battle even earned him a sliver of respect from the proud and aloof Saintess of the Cihang Sword Sect, Lin Tianxin.
"Now that Xiao Cheng has come up the mountain ahead of schedule, this event will most likely occur earlier too," Lin Xiao mused, frowning. "And Weiwei’s current strength far surpasses what it was at this point in the original plot. Therefore... could there be a different outcome to this fight?"
"Forget it. Do I need to overthink this so much?" he thought. "Xiao Cheng is only at the peak of the Dharma Appearance Stage. As the Destiny Big Villain, invincible among those of the same cultivation level, I can crush him with a flick of my finger. Why bother dwelling on it? Yes, right now, the most important thing is to make one last push to increase my strength! Ye Chen has been thoroughly reduced to a clown. The Sky Yin Blood Demon is my true adversary at this stage!"
With this in mind, Lin Xiao composed himself. Then, from his storage space, he retrieved the Superior Grade Nascent Nurturing Pill awarded by the system!
In fact, on the way back from Beacon City, he had already sensed the barrier to his cultivation level loosening. Above his Golden Core, the faint shadow of a miniature figure seated on a lotus platform had appeared! That was a precursor to shattering the Golden Core to form a Nascent Soul—stepping into the Nascent Soul Stage! However, after careful consideration, Lin Xiao had ultimately chosen to temporarily seal his qi perception and suppress his cultivation level’s advancement. He had even forcibly deactivated the ’rogue’ immortal skill, "Beiming Swallowing Celestial Power," which had been quietly operating in the background!
There was no other reason for this. He planned to find an opportune moment after returning to the sect to consume the Nascent Nurturing Pill and attempt to condense the legendary Nine-Colored Nascent Soul!
And clearly, that moment was now!
GULP.
Without any hesitation, Lin Xiao decisively swallowed the jade-green Immortal Pill, which was brimming with Spiritual Energy.
As an indescribably warm current spread through his body, an incomparably profound and supremely noble Daoist rhyme also began to manifest around him, eventually transforming into Golden Dao Lotuses that filled the void.
At this moment, Lin Xiao felt his perception of all the qi dynamics between heaven and earth reach an unprecedented level of acuity, bordering on perfection!
Simultaneously, various incredible and majestic visions appeared in his Sea of Consciousness!
A sea of clouds, heavenly palaces, primordial wilderness, infernal realms...
Just as his Divine Soul connected with heaven and earth, achieving a wondrous state of unity...
Lin Xiao closed his eyes, activated the Beiming mental method, and descended into the deepest state of meditative cultivation!
A powerful Nascent Soul master—True Master Lin—was about to emerge!