MSBITRS Chapter 78 V2

“Master, the world is dangerous and people’s hearts are hard to read,” Li Changshou said quietly.
“Think about it—when I was at the Nascent Soul stage, I pretended to only be at the Core Formation stage.

So if anyone wanted to target me, they’d plan as if I were just a Core Formation cultivator. That gives me a much better chance of survival if they slip up.

Surely, you can understand that logic.”

Elder Qi Yuan nodded thoughtfully. Something still felt off, but he couldn’t quite put his finger on it.

Li Changshou continued,
“I’ve always portrayed myself as a promising inner sect disciple, just a step behind the top talents. My monthly resources are only 20% less than those of true prodigies.

But the benefits? No one knows my name, no one understands my abilities, so no one tries to mess with me.

Master, think about it:

If our Little Qiong Peak suddenly produced a true prodigy, other peaks would get jealous.

If we had a top disciple, we’d attract rivals.

Peaks often compete for cultivation resources, and since the sect’s income is fairly stable, that competition can get intense.”

Elder Qi Yuan thought for a while and then nodded slowly.

He used to think his disciple’s behavior was full of odd logic and strange justifications. But now that Changshou was stronger than him, his reasoning suddenly made… quite a bit of sense.

Stroking his beard, the old man sighed,
“I suppose you’re right. Your master was just being short-sighted before.”

Li Changshou raised an eyebrow—his master was even easier to persuade than he thought.

cough—or maybe just more open to logic.

“Master, what I want to talk to you about today is the path ahead—for you, Ling’e, and me.”

“The path ahead?”

Elder Qi Yuan gave a wry smile.
“What path?

We cultivate in peace within the sect every day—isn’t that a good life?

Or do you feel the sect can’t contain an immortal like you anymore?”

“The sect has been very good to us,” Li Changshou said seriously.
“If trouble ever comes, I’ll help however I can—as long as I’m still alive, of course. And if I can get revenge for the sect in the future, I absolutely will.

But Master—don’t you want to live a little longer?”

“Longevity, huh… Of course, I’d like that,” Qi Yuan sighed.
“But you don’t need to worry. If I can become a Turbid Immortal and have a shot at advancing to True Immortal, I’ll already be more than satisfied.”

Li Changshou smiled.
“Master, there’s a way for you to extend your lifespan even after becoming a True Immortal.

And it’s something that would benefit both me and Ling’e as well.”

“Hmm? Does it help you and Ling’e? Go on, I’m listening.”

Li Changshou pointed upward, then traced two ancient characters on the table:

Heavenly Court.

—written in the classical style.

Elder Qi Yuan furrowed his brow, making a few thoughtful hums.

Seeing this, Li Changshou sighed inwardly.

Just like most cultivators, his master probably had some resistance to joining an official “public” institution like the Heavenly Court.

It’s understandable—cultivating freely in the mountains is far more pleasant than being constrained by heavenly laws and constantly bossed around.

Li Changshou had prepared a long list of persuasive points to try and convince his master to go to the Heavenly Court.

If Master still didn’t want to go, that was fine too—he wasn’t going to force him. This was more of a “let’s just see” kind of talk…

“Mas—”

Li Changshou had just opened his mouth when Elder Qi Yuan suddenly asked with some confusion:

“What does that place have to do with increasing lifespan?”

Huh?

Li Changshou was briefly stunned.
“Master… don’t tell me you don’t know the benefits of that place?”

“I’ve heard people mention it before,” Elder Qi Yuan replied, frowning. “After the great war between the Wu and the Demons, a few of the Saints built that place atop the ruins of the Demon Court. But I’ve never really heard much beyond that.”

Li Changshou: …

The Heavenly Court’s reputation right now…

Not living up to the hype.

“Master, allow me to explain it to you in detail,” Li Changshou offered.

Elder Qi Yuan immediately nodded, quite interested to hear what he had to say.

—

Half a day later…

Li Changshou strolled back to the alchemy room, hands behind his back. He had just retrieved the small box from his master.

To his surprise, his master wasn’t at all resistant to the idea of joining the Heavenly Court. He seemed genuinely intrigued. And now, with a clearer goal, he seemed even more motivated to push toward the True Immortal realm.

Thinking it over carefully, ever since becoming a Turbid Immortal, his master had seemed increasingly out of place within the sect.

If his master could break through to True Immortal soon and take a minor post in the Heavenly Court—maybe even serve as a regional land god—life might be much easier for him.

Li Changshou had also left behind several pills to help with cultivation.

At the Turbid Immortal stage, there was no need to be overly conservative. The potential for future advancement was already limited, so using pills to push progress was entirely reasonable.

Once his master reached the True Immortal stage, Li Changshou could pull a few strings through his “buddy” in the Matchmaker Pavilion and help his master secure a clerical post in the Heavenly Court. Shouldn’t be a problem…

Step two of the plan was going surprisingly well.

Now it was just a matter of waiting for his master to break through to True Immortal. That could take another thousand years…

Maybe even two thousand…

But definitely before the calamity of the Investiture of the Gods begins.

Turbid Immortal cultivation was far more difficult than the orthodox Celestial Path and its Primordial Immortals. Part of the reason was their lack of proper tribulation opportunities.

“Should I build a backup safehouse outside the mountain gate…?”

Li Changshou pondered the thought as he walked.

If the sect were ever to face destruction before the three of them could report to the Heavenly Court, it would be good to have a fallback shelter ready…

As he strolled through the woods, he decided—at least for now—not to pursue that idea.

The top priority was still upgrading the compound’s main array.

Besides, he didn’t exactly have enough rare materials left to construct a fully fortified “safehouse” with all the necessary formations.

Just as he returned to the alchemy room, his spiritual senses picked up Jiu Wu flying in.

This visit from Ao Yi had been a surprise, and Jiu Wu had truly helped a lot. Even if some of his help had been a bit… chaotic, the intention mattered.

The short Daoist seemed to be in a great mood, laughing loudly as he flew through the outer isolation array around Little Qiong Peak.

“Hahaha!

Nephew Changshou, guess what I brought you this time?

Your handling of those cultivators from Golden Ao Island wasn’t half-bad—so the sect’s giving you quite a few rewards!”

As he spoke, Jiu Wu hovered on a cloud and casually tossed over two treasure pouches.
“They’re filled with materials for setting up arrays—consider it encouragement from the sect to keep honing your formation skills!”

Li Changshou caught the pouches with a sweep of his immortal power, inspecting them from a distance before taking them in hand.

Jiu Wu wasn’t surprised in the slightest and remained floating in midair about ten feet away.

Li Changshou cupped his hands and bowed.
“Thank you very much, Uncle-Master.”

“Hey, don’t thank me just yet,” Jiu Wu chuckled.

He pulled out a small silver-white sword and tossed it over as if it were no big deal.
“This is an access token for the Dao Canon’s inner sanctum.

Took some effort on my part to get it for you.

Inside, you’ll find countless formation and alchemy texts—only accessible to True Immortals within the sect.

Well? What do you think?

Hmm? Hmm?”

As he spoke, Jiu Wu waggled his eyebrows with exaggerated expression.

Li Changshou’s eyes lit up. He immediately caught the little sword and flipped it over in his hands a couple of times, a small smile forming on his lips.

He hadn’t expected this kind of bonus!

Revealing his cultivation level earlier had seemed like a loss at the time, but now, it was paying off.

“Uncle-Master, please come inside and sit for a bit.”

“Nah, no time,” Jiu Wu waved him off with a sigh.
“Sigh, I’m just a poor overworked soul. I’ve got another errand to run right away.

Once you become a sect administrator after reaching immortality, you’ll know just how exhausting this job is.”

Li Changshou’s mind stirred.
“Uncle-Master, where are you heading this time?”

Jiu Wu chuckled,
“Looks like Central Divine Continent is planning a Grand Gathering of the Three Doctrines’ Immortal Sects. Probably fifty to a hundred years from now.

I’m heading out with two elders to attend some early meetings, representing our Duxian Sect in discussions with those big sects.

But let’s be real—compared to those ancient clans, our sect’s still young and carries little weight. We’ll mostly just listen to what the major sects have to say.”

A Grand Gathering of the Three Doctrines’ Immortal Sects?

What the heck was that?

Could it be related… to the Investiture Calamity?

Li Changshou started piecing things together in his head.

Meanwhile, Jiu Wu seemed in a hurry. He gave a quick reminder to cultivate well and was about to leave when—

“Uncle-Master, wait!” Li Changshou called out instinctively.

He realized a second too late—he should’ve said “Please stay” instead.