NOVEL NEXT Chapter 6
Chapter 6: I’m on Equal Footing with the Purple Empyrean Patriarch
One month later.
Yellow Springs Sect.
Three Lives Secret Realm, on a wooden bridge.
A white-bearded elder sat with his eyes closed, quietly fishing by the riverside.
From any angle, the elder emanated an ancient aura, having lived for countless years.
“Clan Elder, your unworthy descendant Yin Xuan comes to seek punishment!”
Suddenly, an urgent shout broke the tranquility of this place.
At this moment, the white-bearded elder slowly opened his eyes, pulled up a massive black and white fish with effort, and placed it in his basket.
Then he looked at the somewhat disheveled Yin Xuan and asked puzzledly: “Xuan’er, weren’t you supposed to be attacking the Purple Empyrean Sect with the others? Why are you in such a state?”
Yin Xuan knelt on the ground, sobbing. The mighty Yellow Springs Sect Master was like a child before the white-bearded elder.
“Xuan’er, why are you…”
“Clan Elder, you’ve been in seclusion in the secret realm and don’t know—the three major sects are finished!”
Through his tears, Yin Xuan recounted everything that happened three days ago when they attacked the Purple Empyrean Sect.
This included the embarrassing incident where, after becoming a slave, he was deliberately sent by Zi Zhantian to shovel manure.
As he listened, the white-bearded elder’s expression changed from composure to surprise, then gradually returned to calmness.
“That Zi Zhantian is too much! Please, Clan Elder, take action and avenge your descendant!”
Yin Xuan said resentfully.
The white-bearded elder thought for a moment, then waved his hand: “There’s no hurry.”
“Xuan’er, let me ask you, when you escaped from the Purple Empyrean Sect, was there any hindrance?”
“Clan Elder, I concealed my aura and secretly ran away while Zi Zhantian was distracted…”
“Fool.” The white-bearded elder scolded upon hearing this. “Although that Zi fellow’s cultivation is similar to yours and he might not have detected you.”
“But if he couldn’t discover you, could the Purple Empyrean Patriarch not detect you?”
Then he sighed: “Xuan’er, you’ve fallen into their trap.”
“Since the Purple Empyrean Patriarch dared to let you leave, it means he already knew of my existence and was deliberately testing…”
Upon hearing his elder’s reminder, Yin Xuan instantly felt afraid.
“Clan Elder, I…”
“But it doesn’t matter.”
The white-bearded elder gestured for Yin Xuan to be at ease.
“If it were ten thousand years ago, killing three first-rank Emperors with one move would indeed be beyond this old man’s capability.”
“But now, after ten thousand years, I am no longer what I used to be.”
As he said this, the white-bearded elder released his powerful cultivation, brightening Yin Xuan’s eyes.
“Clan Elder, you’ve broken through?”
The white-bearded elder nodded slightly: “I have comprehended the mysteries of the Three Lives Secret Realm and entered the third-rank Emperor Realm!”
“I believe that Purple Empyrean Patriarch and I are roughly equal.”
“The Purple Empyrean Patriarch is also a third-rank Emperor?”
“Then, what should we do?”
Yin Xuan hadn’t expected the Purple Empyrean Patriarch to be so strong, actually on equal footing with the Clan Elder.
The white-bearded elder chuckled: “This old man has his ways.”
“Xuan’er, return to the Purple Empyrean Sect first.”
“Yes, Clan Elder!”
After kowtowing several times, Yin Xuan left the secret realm.
The white-bearded elder picked up his fish basket from the shore, then plucked a green spiritual herb, transformed into a stream of light, and flew away.
…
Meanwhile, at the Purple Empyrean Sect.
Lin Xuanqing sat in the rebuilt Tai Xu Palace, completely unaware that Yin Xuan had escaped.
He was currently reveling in the joy of his rapidly increasing Reputation Points.
[Reputation Points +1]
[Reputation Points +4]
[Reputation Points +2]
[…]
The event of Lin Xuanqing one-shot killing three Emperors shocked the North Sea Domain and spread quickly.
In three days, the Reputation Points on his system panel jumped from just over 100 points directly to 1,000 points exactly.
[Ding: Congratulations to the host for unlocking the lottery feature~]
Next to the achievement panel, a new lottery interface appeared.
[Ding: One additional lottery chance is gifted for this time.]
On the lottery interface, regular draws showed a ×2 count.
The 10-draw option on the right showed a cost of 9,000 Reputation Points.
“It seems like it’s 1,000 points per draw, with a free draw when you do ten.”
This lottery model was all too familiar to Lin Xuanqing from his previous life.
Whether good items would drop depended on his luck.
“Single draws for miracles, let’s go!”
Without hesitation, Lin Xuanqing pressed the lottery button.
[Reward: Reputation Points +500]
“…”
“A bit unlucky, let’s try again!”
[Reward: Digestive Tablets *1 bottle]
“What the hell?”
“Digestive Tablets?”
“System, are you sure you didn’t make a mistake putting this kind of thing in the prize pool?”
[Ding: Host shouldn’t complain when you don’t understand. This is an excellent medicinal pill.]
Well, Lin Xuanqing couldn’t argue with that.
You have to admit, it really was a medicinal pill!
Even if its effect was just aiding digestion.
After reluctantly accepting this bottle of Digestive Tablets, Lin Xuanqing continued to wait for his Reputation Points to automatically increase.
But when they reached 1,700 points, they stopped growing.
“Why aren’t they increasing anymore?”
“Could it be that my reputation isn’t prominent enough in the North Sea Domain?”
“That shouldn’t be the case.”
[Ding: This is because the quality of the host’s fame spread this time isn’t high.]
[Ding: The height of Reputation Points depends on two factors: first, the host’s strength in others’ minds, and second, their own strength.]
Hearing this explanation, Lin Xuanqing understood immediately.
Although he had killed the Setting Sun Patriarch and others last time, the outside world only estimated his strength to be around second or third rank, which wasn’t shocking enough.
For supreme powerhouses like the North Sea Emperor, a third-rank Emperor might just be ordinary.
Moreover, the North Sea Domain officially had only one Emperor, but various major powers had many secluded patriarchs, each more reclusive than the last, hiding in unknown places.
Within the domain, the largest factions were: One Emperor Palace, Three Great Schools, Seven Family Clans, and Ten Holy Lands.
Except for the North Sea Emperor in the Emperor Palace, the strongest visible figures in other factions were merely peak Saint Realm cultivators.
Lin Xuanqing’s strength clearly hadn’t impressed the hidden powerhouses of these factions; otherwise, it wouldn’t have added only this small amount of Reputation Points.
“It seems I need to continue writing that letter to the North Sea Emperor…”
Thinking of this, Lin Xuanqing silently took out the half-written invitation letter from his sleeve and placed it on the table before him.
[Dear North Sea Emperor]
[Hello!]
[I am from the Purple Empyrean Sect…]
Following his previous train of thought, he had written less than ten characters when suddenly, an elder’s shout came from outside the Tai Xu Palace.
This shout was extremely powerful, resonating throughout the entire Purple Empyrean Sect.
“I, Yin Tianchen, have come to visit the Purple Empyrean Patriarch!”
Upon hearing this, Lin Xuanqing’s body trembled slightly, almost breaking the brush in his hand.
“Damn it, not again! I finally got my thoughts in order for this letter, ahhhh~”
Lin Xuanqing frantically scratched his head.
“And this is a fantasy world! Do you know how hard it is to write with a brush pen?!”
But the volume of the voice outside didn’t diminish at all, continuing to disturb Lin Xuanqing.
“I, Yin Tianchen, have come to visit the Purple Empyrean Patriarch!”
“I request to meet with the Purple Empyrean Patriarch!”