In Li Xun's courtyard, inside his room, he sat cross-legged on the meditation platform, his eyes gleaming with excitement.
The gains he had made today far exceeded his expectations. He had invested hundreds of times, and the system had rewarded him with so many items that he had nearly lost count.
Not to mention, he had also seized three storage bracelets from the Otherworldly Demons.
Inside those bracelets were blood essence stones, each of which was an invaluable treasure. Tossing even just a few into the open market would undoubtedly spark chaos and bloodshed!
In addition, the sect had gifted him a middle-grade Earth-level technique.
Elder Xie had mentioned that there were more rewards to come, but Li Xun wasn't too concerned. The subsequent rewards would likely not surpass the value of the Earth-level technique—probably just symbolic gifts.
Suppressing his excitement, Li Xun spoke in his mind:
"System, claim the rewards!"
As soon as the words fell:
Buzz!
A terrifying aura emanated from his body. His cultivation, initially at the early stage of the Profound Elixir Realm, soared instantly to the mid-stage, leaving him just a hair's breadth away from the late stage.
"This much of a leap… must be decades of cultivation!" Li Xun murmured to himself.
The numerous investments he had made this time included many inner sect disciples, and many of the system's rewards came in the form of cultivation years. While each individual reward was only a few years, collectively, they added up to decades.
While Li Xun was still immersed in the euphoria of his breakthrough:
Boom!
A loud noise reverberated, and Li Xun felt his entire courtyard tremble slightly. Snapping out of his reverie, he immediately refocused.
In front of him, the room was now piled high with spirit stones, so rich in spiritual energy that it was nearly tangible. These stones spanned the low, middle, high, and even peak grades, numbering beyond count.
Among them, Li Xun even spotted two peak-grade spirit stones!
These were rare treasures.
A single peak-grade spirit stone could be exchanged for a million lower-grade spirit stones, an astronomical fortune.
With a wave of his hand, the clinking sound of shifting treasures echoed through the room. As Li Xun sifted through the pile, he unearthed a variety of weapons, pills, manuals, and other treasures.
"Sometimes, having too many rewards can be a headache," he sighed.
The sheer quantity of items would take significant time just to sort through.
Glancing at the sky outside, Li Xun didn't hesitate for too long. Extending his spiritual sense, he began organizing his treasures quickly.
Half an hour later.
Li Xun finally managed to sort through the system's overwhelming rewards:
Spirit Stones: Over 120,000, spanning lower, middle, high, and peak grades.
Pills: Ninety-seven bottles, including Restorative Pills, Spirit Yuan Pills, Enlightenment Pills, and more.
Weapons and Defensive Treasures: Sixteen items, all of which were magical treasures rather than spiritual treasures. Among them were two defensive artifacts that Li Xun deemed useful and immediately kept for future use.
Spiritual Herbs (100+ Years): Thirty-nine, most of which were several hundred years old. Only three exceeded a thousand years.
Cultivation Techniques and Martial Technique: Twenty-four, with twenty-one of them being Yellow-level and three at the Black-level level. However, none were particularly useful to Li Xun. One of the manuals was a halberd technique, but it was only a lower-grade Yellow-level, so he glanced at it briefly before tossing it aside.
With everything sorted, Li Xun felt an odd mixture of satisfaction and exhaustion. Having so many resources at his disposal was a blessing, but managing them required a considerable effort. Still, the incredible gains far outweighed the trouble.
In Li Xun's courtyard, he exhaled deeply as he stored away all the system rewards. After tidying up, he took out the Purple Radiance Celestial Net Sutra, the Earth-level middle-grade technique he had acquired in the Scripture Pavilion.
According to its description, once mastered, this technique could grant him the power to pluck stars, grasp the moon, and reshape mountains and rivers.
"Earth-level techniques are already this terrifying. Just how powerful would a Heaven-level technique be?"
Without hesitation, Li Xun retrieved a Technique Advancement Token and pressed it onto his identification jade token.
Buzz!
A violet radiance flashed, and as Li Xun's spiritual sense entered the jade token again, the Purple Radiance Celestial Net Sutra had undergone a profound transformation. While its name remained the same, its contents had entirely changed.
"Heaven-level middle grade!"
Li Xun was ecstatic and immediately dove into studying the revised sutra.
After a quarter of an hour, he withdrew his spiritual sense, his heart still quivering in awe.
The Heaven-level middle-grade Purple Radiance Celestial Net Sutra had evolved from its Earth-level middle-grade foundation. While the essence of the technique remained, the power of its true essence had surged several levels higher.
"Such a technique… I doubt the Scripture Pavilion contains many like it," Li Xun murmured, deeply impressed.
While he wasn't certain if mastering an Earth-level technique could truly let him pluck stars and grasp the moon, he was confident that mastering a Heaven-level technique would make such feats a reality.
Focusing his mind and body, Li Xun adjusted himself to an optimal state and began cultivating the upgraded Purple Radiance Celestial Net Sutra.
Buzz!
The domineering nature of the Heaven-level middle-grade technique immediately made itself evident.
The moment Li Xun began cultivating, it felt as if a seal within his body had been undone. His latent potential erupted, and his energy surged skyward, piercing through the heavens like a soaring dragon.
The energy vortex he created greedily drew in spiritual energy from all directions, creating a breathtaking scene visible for dozens of miles around.
In the room, Li Xun sat cross-legged, his white robes pristine and ethereal. His black hair fluttered, and his crystalline skin radiated a divine aura. Like a serene deity, he remained oblivious to the external world.
Meanwhile, in Profound Sun Sect's Grand Hall, Elder Xie stood respectfully before the sect master—a scholarly middle-aged man whose deep, starlit eyes gazed toward the inner sect disciples' quarters.
When he noticed the dragon-like energy surging from Li Xun's courtyard, a rare look of solemnity crossed his face.
"The direction of that phenomenon… is that where the inner sect disciple Li Xun you mentioned resides?" the sect master asked, his voice gentle and soothing, as if a spring breeze.
"Most likely," Elder Xie replied somewhat uncertainly. "I only met Li Xun for the first time today, so I'm not entirely sure of his exact residence within the inner sect."
The sect master nodded slightly, his gaze lingering on the scene.
"Among the thousands of inner sect disciples, no one but Li Xun could cause such a phenomenon," he remarked with a sigh.
"The age of strife is upon us. For Profound Sun Sect to produce such an unparalleled genius is a great blessing."
"I couldn't agree more!" Elder Xie echoed with a nod. In his view, anyone capable of defeating an Otherworldly Demon of the same level—let alone three of them in one go—was undoubtedly worthy of being called a peerless talent.
There was just one regret…
Such an extraordinary disciple wasn't his.
The sect master turned to Elder Xie.
"Inform Elder Chen to conceal himself near Li Xun's residence starting today. Until Li Xun breaks through to the Life and Death Realm, his safety will be entrusted to Elder Chen."
"Understood!" Elder Xie replied with a shiver of respect.
Hearing those words, Elder Xie realized the sect master's intent: Li Xun was being groomed as the future leader of Profound Sun Sect.
After all, not even the sect master's own disciples were granted such protection from an elder.
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