Chapter 1351: Fellow Daoists, Please Stay

Lightning is widely recognized as one of the most powerful offensive forces in the world. Those who mastered lightning naturally held a huge upper hand in battle.

Struck down by lightning, Lin Yuan crashed to the ground, wisps of black smoke rising from him.

When Meng Qingling saw this, she didn't choose to escape. Instead, she tossed her jade token to Fang Chen. "Remember to leave my jade token behind."

The others, seeing that, quickly handed over their jade tokens as well.

After absorbing the strands of spiritual energy from their jade tokens, Fang Chen and Little Immortal Honglian left the area.

Meng Qingling swept her gaze across the others and said, "Thankfully, this is just the beginning. If we had already gathered a significant amount of spiritual energy and then had it taken from us, the loss would be much greater. Everyone, let's join forces. This person's origins are unusual. He might even be related to the Enlightenment God Palace. If we don't cooperate, we'll have no way to defend ourselves if we encounter him again."

The others glanced at Lin Yuan's miserable state and nodded in agreement. After half an hour, Lin Yuan's injuries finally healed. But as he recalled being so thoroughly beaten by some nameless opponent, a sense of indignation rose within him.

This mysterious figure had thoroughly crushed his pride. Even his jade token's spiritual energy had been seized from him.

"Just you wait!" Lin Yuan gnashed his teeth. "Next time we meet in the range, I won't let you off!"

Leaving behind a harsh threat, Lin Yuan quickly disappeared in the opposite direction from where Fang Chen had gone.

***

Meanwhile, Fang Chen and Little Immortal Honglian walked side by side.

Little Immortal Honglian curiously asked, "Daoist Fang, that lightning bolt just now, it resembles the Azure Lightning Technique from the Dao Sects. Are you from a Dao sect?"

Fang Chen smiled and nodded. "Actually, my origins are somewhat connected to Yu Wuxia's."

Little Immortal Honglian's expression shifted slightly, and she casually asked, "I've heard that in the Ancient Desolate Realm, there is a sect called the Heavenly Saint Sect. Their people also know the Azure Lightning Technique."

Here it comes...

Fang Chen's eyes, which had been closed, flashed with a faint smile. He had intentionally used the Azure Lightning Technique in front of Little Immortal Honglian to see how much she knew.

Now, the answer he received was far more than he had imagined. If it weren't for Little Immortal Honglian having had contact with Wang Chongsong, how would she know about the Heavenly Saint Sect?

In the Upper Three Realms, Wang Chongsong was the famous one, not the Heavenly Saint Sect. It was one thing to know about Wang Chongsong, but knowing the Heavenly Saint Sect and that cultivators there master the Azure Lightning Technique was a serious matter.

Fang Chen replied casually, "I think I've heard of it. It's a Dao sect."

Little Immortal Honglian nodded thoughtfully but didn't press the topic further. Instead, she shifted the conversation to planning their next moves.

To become one of the eighteen Dao Union Realm cultivators out of a million, the two of them would have to rob tens of thousands of people. This number was large, but under normal circumstances, they could go by just robbing half that amount to succeed.

The strength of the million Dao Union Realm cultivators was roughly the same, save for a few special individuals. As a result, most participants accumulated at least some spiritual power in their jade tokens.

Little Immortal Honglian said, "The people who made it into the palace last year had accumulated about eight thousand stands of spiritual energy."

Fang Chen asked, "That's not too difficult. But tell me, how much do you need to change the jade token's color?"

Little Immortal Honglian thought for a moment, then answered, "I've heard that twenty thousand strands of spiritual energy levels you up to the bronze color. If you have fifty thousand strands, the jade tokens turn silver. However, silver jade tokens rarely appear. Even bronze is enough for special treatment within the Enlightenment God Palace, and the sects behind us will also receive better treatment."

After a pause, Little Immortal Honglian tentatively said, "Daoist Fang, I think you have a shot at a silver jade token."

"Hard to say. My methods are special, but you can only have so much spiritual energy in reserve. I can't keep fighting forever. So, I'd be happy just to aim for bronze," replied Fang Chen with a smile.

Little Immortal Honglian nodded. That was reasonable. There were very few natives of the Lower Six Realms who had ever obtained a silver jade token in their assessments.

Fang Chen asked, "By the way, aside from silver, aren't there gold and purple jade tokens? If it's so hard to get a silver jade token, have gold and purple ever appeared?"

Little Immortal Honglian smiled and said, "Actually, they have appeared before, but it was a long time ago. And it wasn't just the gold; that person got the purple jade token. To achieve purple, you need at least two hundred thousand strands of spiritual energy."

"To claim two hundred thousand portions of spiritual energy by oneself. How incredibly difficult that would be! Even I wouldn't dare to imagine it."

"Is that even humanly possible?" said Fang Chen with mock surprise. "I wonder what happened to that person? Did they eventually become an Ancient Immortal?"

"He was half a step away," answered Little Immortal Honglian, letting out a sigh. "You must have heard of this cultivator. His surname is Wang, and he's also from the Lower Six Realms and originated from a Dao Sect. After he obtained the purple jade token, he was admitted into the Enlightenment God Palace as an exception, becoming a core disciple. His path was different from ours."

She continued, "Later, his cultivation soared, and he made significant contributions to the Enlightenment God Palace. Unfortunately, for certain reasons, he was later suppressed and hasn't been heard of since. If he's still alive today, he must be in the Lower Six Realms."

Fang Chen immediately realized she was referring to Wang Chongsong. To avoid raising any suspicion, he deliberately shifted the topic. Over the next month, after the two of them set their plans, they specifically targeted those famous Dao Union Realm cultivators to rob their spiritual energy.

The spiritual energy in their jade tokens steadily grew denser. In just one month, Little Immortal Honglian had already obtained two thousand strands of spiritual energy, while Fang Chen had acquired five thousand.

At this rate, Little Immortal Honglian would almost certainly enter the Enlightenment God Palace. As for Fang Chen, he had a strong chance of turning his jade token bronze.

One day, they received news that Meng Qingling's group had gathered no less than three thousand portions of spiritual energy, so they went to find them. However, they were one step too late. Meng Qingling and the others had already completed their robbery and left.

All that remained were a few hundred cultivators with grim expressions, the scent of gunpowder hanging thick in the air.

The battle appeared to have been extremely fierce, leveling several mountain peaks

"We're too late. Those guys' jade tokens must've been swept clean," said Little Immortal Honglian, her gaze sweeping across the group of cultivators.

She then motioned for Fang Chen to leave with her.

But just as they were about to depart, a familiar voice rang out. "Fellow Daoists, please stay."

Both of them turned to look and saw Qin Zhen and his group emerging from the crowd of cultivators. They appeared tired, their robes torn and ragged, looking somewhat disheveled.

"We invited you to join our alliance, but you refused. So now that we meet, we are opponents, not friends," said Qin Zhen with a cupped fist. "Please hand over your jade tokens. Doing so will spare you from physical harm."

The hundreds of Dao Union Realm cultivators present immediately turned their sharp, cold eyes toward Fang Chen and Little Immortal Honglian.