Chapter 402: President, I Will Walk This Path With You!

The experience left Wang Yuan rather stunned. It wasn’t because Luo Chen had made him look so disheveled, but because, despite his rich battle experience, he had still fallen into Luo Chen’s trap

The spell was powerful, but its casting conditions had to be exceptionally demanding. Given Luo Chen’s current abilities, he couldn't possibly cast such a spell as quickly as he cast Solar Flare. Yet somehow, he had broken it down, reconstructed it step by step, and unleashed it in a way that left no time for his opponent to respond. At first, he had begun casting Solar Flare, then voluntarily dismissed it, leaving a field of scorching spirit energy on the battlefield. Using that as a catalyst, he had triggered the rest.

Seeing Wang Yuan in a daze, Luo Chen was deeply satisfied. In just a year, he had finally pushed Earth Summit and Wave Surge from Grandmaster level to Perfected Mastery. With that, the three core spells— Fireball, Earth Summit, and Wave Surge—had reached perfect balance, which meant that he could now combine them into a second-tier offensive spell, Landslide.

Luo Chen still couldn’t cast it instantly, but he now had Grandmaster-level proficiency, which meant that he could finally tap into its power properly. Earth Summit for suppression, Wave Surge for slowing down the opponent, Fireball for its explosiveness. Together, they could restrict the enemy’s escape and deliver a devastating blast. During that test strike, he had split Landslide into three seamless steps. Each flowed smoothly into the next. The end result had been... decisive.

"I didn’t expect you to grow so fast," Wang Yuan said, shaking himself out of his daze and sighing, "I still remember back when you were weak and I personally taught you to use any means necessary to beat your enemies. As it turns out, you really did learn that lesson. I have to be honest, you caught me completely off guard."

Luo Chen descended from the sky; hovering over others was considered rude. "Brother Wang, you flatter me."

Wang Yuan shook his head seriously and said, "I wouldn’t say it if it weren’t true. Also, I know you were holding back! If you had unleashed it fully... Tell me honestly, how much of your strength did you use?"

With a wry smile, Luo Chen put up three fingers.

"Thirty percent?!"

Wang Yuan was truly shocked. A mere thirty percent, and it had forced him to use his Giant Spirit Transformation. What if Luo Chen had used his full strength? Under that terrifying onslaught, even if he went all out, he might have been reduced to ashes!

Seeing his surprise, Luo Chen smiled and shook his head. "Brother Wang, there’s no need to be so shocked. If this was a fight to the death, with your experience, you would've escaped the spell’s range during my second step."

During that second step, he had used Wave Surge to force Wang Yuan to retreat.

Wang Yuan thought it through. If it had been a real battle, that Wave Surge might threaten a normal Foundation Establishment cultivator, but it wouldn’t have stopped him. He would have charged straight through and disrupted Luo Chen’s casting. But since this was a sparring match, he’d chosen to retreat for the sake of appearances.

Once he understood this, Wang Yuan felt relieved. But even so, he couldn’t help but sigh. "You really are getting smarter and smarter."

"I’m the president of the Luo Tian Society. Of course I’m smart," Luo Chen replied with a grin. "Want to keep going?"

Wang Yuan harrumphed and pulled a hemp robe from his storage pouch, casually draping it over his bare chest. "What’s the point? You ruined my clothes."

"Hey, that's just brotherly romance! If I go shirtless right at the start, who will dare to fight me? But I have to say, Brother Wang, you really lose a piece of clothing every time you fight. That's a bit uncivilized, don’t you think?"

The two walked out, bantering all the way. Luo Chen's tongue was as sharp as his combat skills, but Wang Yuan had plenty to say, too!

Giant Spirit Transformation made his body grow huge, and clothes that could stretch with it were rare. They needed highly elastic materials and at least a third-tier Size-Adjusting Formation; anything that could hold such a formation wasn’t ordinary. In fact, it'd have to be an enchanted treasure, and unfortunately, he hadn’t acquired one yet.

Meanwhile, Luo Chen felt a little regretful that he hadn’t gotten to properly experience Wang Yuan’s Divine Blood Tribulation Finger. He’d heard that Wang Yuan was working on follow-up techniques for it, based on the Qi-Physique Origin Method and combined with Bright Force and purified spirit energy in liquid form. But Wang Yuan clearly had no intention of testing it on Luo Chen today. He hadn’t even mastered it yet and couldn’t control its power nearly as easily as Luo Chen could now control Landslide.

As for their most powerful secret techniques, neither of them brought it up. Those involved enchanted treasures, and with their current Foundation Establishment strength, such treasures were far from easy to control.

They left the Debate Platform, and Luo Chen treated Wang Yuan to a lavish meal at The Bell and Cauldron. Both of them had cultivated in Physique Refinement, so they didn't hold back in ordering. In the end, they ended up spending five hundred low-grade spirit stones, enough to buy a bottle of low-grade qi-consolidation pill!

Luo Chen’s heart ached a little at the cost. He still remembered the last time he’d treated someone at The Bell and Cauldron. for only fifty spirit stones. This time, it was a real splurge. But when he saw Wang Yuan’s face beaming with satisfaction, he decided that it was worth it.

After all, what was the point of earning spirit stones if you didn’t spend them? Besides, all the good food would help with Physique Refinement cultivation once they’d digested it. That counted as training, too.

As they were about to part ways, Wang Yuan suddenly said, "Sima Huiniang seems to be about to reach Perfected Mastery of Qi Refinement. If she’s planning to attempt Foundation Establishment, someone needs to keep an eye on things at the Luo Tian Society."

When he heard this, Luo Chen’s brow furrowed slightly. Breaking through to Foundation Establishment didn’t take much time; usually, only a dozen days or so, and a month at the most. Consolidating one's cultivation after the breakthrough, however, was a different matter altogether. He himself had taken three years back then. Duan Feng didn’t count, but Min Longyu had taken half a year, and Wang Yuan had taken just a bit less. If he considered the latter two as benchmarks, then the Luo Tian Society might be without its acting leader for half a year. This was not good news for a rapidly developing organization.

After a few moments of thought, Luo Chen spoke slowly, "It’s fine. Once she has reached Perfected Mastery of Qi Refinement, I will arrange everything."

***

A month later, a man and a woman sat inside Cave Residence Bing Six on Tianlan Peak.

This was a mid-grade, second-tier cave residence that Luo Chen had rented in the name of the Luo Tian Society. Normally, it was used by Min Longyu and Wang Yuan. Duan Feng hardly ever came by; after formally becoming Dao companions with Feng Xia, he had rented a low-grade cave residence on his own. It would have been quite inconvenient to share with the Luo Tian Society.

As for the cost of renting a low-grade cave residence by himself? That amount of spirit stones was nothing to Duan Feng. As the head of the Artifact Hall, his monthly income far exceeded that of an ordinary Foundation Establishment Initiate.

"Didn’t your brothers come to see you?" Luo Chen asked.

Sima Huiniang’s expression was calm. "I already met with them before going into seclusion. We’ve said everything that had to be said."

She was calm, far calmer than any person Luo Chen had ever seen before attempting Foundation Establishment. Before Duan Feng attempted Foundation Establishment, he had brimmed with edge and fire. When Wang Yuan had attempted it, he was with high spirits, while Min Longyu at that time had rekindled his youthful aspirations, determined and resolute. As for Murong Qinglian, since she had Qin Liangchen looking after her, Luo Chen hadn't meddled. However, from her later failure, it was clear that she had entered seclusion burdened with worries and unresolved attachments.

Compared to these people, Sima Huiniang’s calmness seemed somewhat incredible. Clearly, her aptitude was lower, and the burdens she carried were far heavier. Yet she remained composed, as if unconcerned about success or failure.

Luo Chen hesitated a little. In the Divine Ghost Heartmirror simulation, Sima Huiniang had indeed succeeded in reaching the Foundation Establishment Realm, but that memory was rather blurry. He even felt that it might just have been his own hopeful projection, born of a desire to shed some responsibility. Now, seeing her like this, even he couldn’t help but feel uncertain.

"Aren’t you afraid of failing?" Luo Chen asked quietly.

Sima Huiniang’s lips curved into a slight smile. "What happens if I fail?"

Luo Chen blinked. For a moment, he didn’t know how to answer.

She gave a soft laugh. "If I succeed, I will still be the Director of the Luo Tian Society. But if I happened to fail, would you really discard me like an old workhorse, President?"

Wow. No wonder she's so calm.

It seemed she had already seen through what the future might hold. Indeed, Luo Chen knew he couldn’t bear to lose such a good assistant. Whether she succeeded or failed, there would always be a place for her in the Luo Tian Society.

Sima Huiniang shook her head, a faint smile at her lips. "In this life, I’ve wandered with my brothers through countless places, weathered countless storms, and tasted every kind of rise and fall. I once dreamed of Foundation Establishment, and I worked hard for it. But I know how hard it is for a rogue cultivator to achieve Foundation Establishment. That’s why my efforts often felt aimless, and the hope was always so slim.

"But ever since I became the Director of the Luo Tian Society, I had a say in every matter, whether big or small, and as the Luo Tian Society grew step by step, I could feel myself truly moving toward success as well. When I saw Duan Feng and Wang Yuan both reach Foundation Establishment one after another, I knew that my turn would come soon. Today is nothing but the natural result of all that. Foundation Establishment is something that should come naturally!"

Her calm words flowed like a murmuring stream. They carried no great waves, but were instead gentle and full of strength.

Luo Chen knew he didn’t need to say anything more to encourage her. He stepped out of the cave residence and gave her a small nod. "When you emerge from seclusion, let us address each other as Fellow Daoists."

Sima Huiniang did not respond. She pursed her lips and pressed the Dragon-Severing Stone switch.

Dong!

A dull sound echoed as the door closed.

Hearing Luo Chen’s footsteps fade away, Sima Huiniang leaned gently against the stone and murmured softly to herself, "President, I will walk this path with you."